The Foreclosure Auction: Luke Walsh Loses His Farm to Louis Rottmann
A Benton County sheriff’s sale is set for May 2, 1914, as a judgment of over $1,200 forces the transfer of land from one local farmer to another.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
NOTICE OF SHERIFF'S SALE OF REAL ESTATE
In the Superior Court of the State of Washington for Benton County. Louis Rottmann, Plaintiff vs. Luke Walsh, Defendant.
Under and by virtue of an Execution under Foreclosure, issued out of and under the Seal of the above entitled Court, holding terms at Prosser, in and for said county, on the 31st day of March, A.D. 1914, upon a judgment rendered in said Court on the 31st day of March, A.D. 1914, in favor of Louis Rottmann, and against Luke Walsh, for the sum of $1257.71 (Twelve Hundred Fifty-seven and 71-100 Dollars), together with attorney’s fees, interest, costs and increased costs, and to me directed and delivered, commanding me to sell the following described property situate, lying and being in Benton County, State of Washington, or so much thereof as may be necessary to satisfy said judgment, attorney’s fees, interest, costs and increased costs, to-wit—
The East Half of the Southeast Quarter of the Southeast Quarter, of Section No. 17, Township 8, North, Range 30, E.W.M., together with the water right appurtenant thereto;
THEREFORE, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN That on SATURDAY the 2nd day of May A.D., 1914, at 11 o'clock in the forenoon of said day, I will sell the above described property or so much thereof as may be necessary to satisfy said judgment, at public auction to the highest bidder, for cash, at the front door of the Court House in Prosser, Benton County, Washington.
This legal notice captures the precarious nature of early 20th-century farming, where a single debt could result in the loss of land through foreclosure. The specific mention of 'water right appurtenant thereto' highlights how critical irrigation access was—and still is—in Benton County’s agricultural economy, turning what looks like dry paperwork into a high-stakes battle over livelihood.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.