March 24, 2020
Spokane, WA
My great grandfather made quite a name for himself between 1900 and his death in 1925. His factories were the largest employers in Evansville, Indiana. At one point they were the largest manufacturers of truck bodies in the world. He made gas engines and refrigerators for Sears, and leased to Sears a building for its first retail store. His accomplishments go on and on. Toward the end of his life he became quite a philanthropist, giving away three quarters of his wealth, most of which went to what is now University of Evansville.
Curiously, in all his accomplishments and no little (at least regional) fame, he seems to have never mentioned that he was born the grandson of a freed slave. He was also somewhat vague about his early adult years, other than having been in real estate and insurance in Kansas City when he was getting started. I had never much pursued that until recently. Oh, my. What a journey.
Herein, Dear Readers, I give you the story of a man my great grandfather became involved with in a highly dubious, and pretty clearly fraudulent, scheme. A man whose story is a gift as he was just one fascinating fraudster. A man named C.J. Weatherby.