heirs

In 1956, a doctor bought a 7.9-acre Florida Keys island from the US at auction with residential zoning; 70 years later, his heirs won a decades-long fight over their right to build

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In 1956, a doctor bought a 7.9-acre Florida Keys island from the US at auction with residential zoning; 70 years later, his heirs won a decades-long fight over their right to build

Representative image of Florida Keys from Canva In 1956, a physician from Florida purchased a 7.9-acre island in the Keys at a federal auction, believing he had acquired a rare piece of private land where he could one day build a home. The island, known as Snipe Key, came with residential zoning and a chain … Read more

In 1862, heirs sold Colorado’s Baca land for 30 cents an acre; 140 years later its 97,000-acre ranch sold for $31.28 million and helped create a national park nearly four times the monument’s original size

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In 1862, heirs sold Colorado’s Baca land for 30 cents an acre; 140 years later its 97,000-acre ranch sold for $31.28 million and helped create a national park nearly four times the monument’s original size

Photo: Baca Ranch House (clicked in 1920)Photo credit: Denver Public Library Collection via NPS A piece of land can begin as a forgotten investment and end as part of a national treasure. That is the remarkable story of Colorado’s Baca Ranch, a vast property at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. In 1862, … Read more

In 1912, a Black couple bought California beachfront land and built a resort; the city seized it in the 1920s, and a century later their heirs got it back and sold it for nearly $20 million

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In 1912, a Black couple bought California beachfront land and built a resort; the city seized it in the 1920s, and a century later their heirs got it back and sold it for nearly $20 million

Charles and Willa Bruce on their wedding day (Left) and Margie Johnson and John Pettigrew in Manhattan Beach in 1927 (Right) A prime piece of Southern California oceanfront property taken from a Black couple through eminent domain a century ago was formally returned to their descendants and then sold back to Los Angeles County for … Read more