Model City is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

in the town of Lewiston in

Niagara County Niagara County is in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 212,666. The county seat is Lockport. The county name is from the Iroquois word ''Onguiaahra''; meaning ''the strait'' or ''thunder of ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, United States.

History

It was proposed in the 1890s as an urban

utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...

by railroad lawyer and

con man A scam, or a confidence trick, is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using a combination of the victim's credulity, naivety, compassion, vanity, confidence, irresponsibi ...

William T. Love (born 26 May 1856 in

Keokuk, Iowa Keokuk is a city in and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States. It is Iowa's southernmost city. The population was 9,900 at the time of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The city is named after the Sauk people, Sauk chief K ...

), who had tried a similar investment scheme in

Huron, South Dakota Huron is a city in and the county seat of Beadle County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,263 at the 2020 census, making it the 8th most populous city in South Dakota. The first settlement at Huron was established in 1880. ...

, earlier in 1890. He planned Model City as "The most beautiful arkin the world" with housing for more than one million people, a canal and

hydroelectric plant Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and also mo ...

. Love promised in his advertising pamphlets that the city would be free of smog-filled skies, that the land would be beautifully landscaped, housing and quality of life would be a cut above even the loveliest urban environments. However, his plans were never realized, despite the approval of the state government in 1893. Amid the panic of 1894 his investors backed out and development stopped, with the only visitors to Model City being "curious reporters and bill collectors," trying to find an absent Love. He claimed to have left for England in 1897 seeking foreign investment. Instead, having absconded with an unknown amount of money, he practiced law in

Cordova, Alaska Cordova ( ) is a port city in Chugach Census Area, Alaska, United States. It lies near the mouth of the Copper River, at the head of Orca Inlet on the east side of Prince William Sound. The population was 2,609 at the 2020 census, up from 2 ...

, for several years, then attempted to start a new model city scheme in the

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...

area before settling on

Lomax, Illinois Lomax is a village in Henderson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 404 at the 2020 census, a decline from 454 in 2010 census. It is part of the Burlington, IA–IL Micropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Lomax is located in ...

, in 1911. By 1914 "New Lomax" went bust, with Love netting $250,000. In 1929 he tried once more, claiming to have for "New City,"

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, which similarly failed to materialize. By the mid-1990s, Model City was "little more than a rural road with a few dozen families" and a bar. Despite its environmentally-friendly concept, Model City became home to an enormous landfill owned by

Waste Management Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment, and disposal of waste, together with monitor ...

Connection to Love Canal

The name

Love Canal Love Canal was a neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York, United States, infamous as the location of a landfill that became the site of an environmental disaster discovered in 1977. Decades of dumping toxic chemicals killed residents and harm ...

was taken from the name of William T. Love. His "Love's Canal", meant to connect the two levels of the

Niagara River The Niagara River ( ) flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, forming part of the border between Ontario, Canada, to the west, and New York, United States, to the east. The origin of the river's name is debated. Iroquoian scholar Bruce T ...

, was to anchor this booming Model City as a shipping lane. He abandoned the idea after digging only 4,600 feet of his canal, which was within the modern city of

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the Canada–United States border, border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York (s ...

. He had also constructed a few streets before creditors repossessed the construction equipment and the last of his property in 1910. This same canal, after being used as a toxic waste dump holding more than 20,000 tons of chemical waste, had a school and a neighborhood built on top of it. It subsequently became a major environmental disaster that was exposed in the 1970s.

References

{{Niagara County, New York Lewiston (town), New York Hamlets in New York (state) Hamlets in Niagara County, New York

History

Connection to Love Canal

See also

References