2/10/2014:
On this date in 1938, the Bismarck Tribune reported the good fortune of two cousins living in North Dakota. Eva and Andy Larson had just learned they were to receive part of the Amsterdam Fortune, an inheritance due to the 6th generation descendants of the Sabo family.
James Sabo and his two sisters were living in Norway during the 1730s. James was later shipwrecked near Holland and became a wealthy businessman in Amsterdam. Having no children of his own, James left his fortune to his sisters' descendants – but only after 160 years of interest built on the account.
By the time the Norwegian immigrants living in America learned of their ancestor's generous investment, the Amsterdam Fortune was believed to be worth over six hundred million dollars. As time passed, more North Dakotans came forward to claim their part of the fortune. Three sisters from Bismarck, a coal dealer in Zap, a professor at Valley City Teacher's College, and a woman from Beulah all claimed to be the long-lost relatives of the Norwegian sisters of James Sabo.
Today, in the 21st Century, imaginary Nigerian princes and fake international lotteries fleece people drawn in by an email promising vast riches. These scams have been around for hundreds of years, each one more creative than the other. The vast numbers of second-generation immigrants living in America, disconnected from their ancestry, were a perfect target for grifters at the beginning of the twentieth century.
From the 1890s until as late as the 1950s, many elaborate and unbelievable stories emerged of fortunes held by European banks, left to distant relatives and future generations. Scammers placed classified advertisements and mailed out letters all throughout the Midwest, asking for a fee to assist in claiming a part of the nonexistent fortune.
The North Dakota hopefuls sent $10 apiece, the equivalent of more than a hundred sixty dollars in today’s currency, to a Minneapolis lawyer to represent their claim. The supposed lawyer was never heard from again. That didn't stop one descendant from going to the Bank of Amsterdam in person, only to be told that there was no money.
Several times a year the United States ambassador in Holland was confronted by angry Americans looking for help in claiming the supposed inheritance. Each time, the ambassador had to explain the sad news that the Amsterdam Fortune only made the scammers rich.
This Dakota Datebook written by Derek Dahlsad.
Sources:
"They Won't Quit Their Jobs", Bismarck Tribune, 2/10/1938
"Six More Heirs to Fortune", Bismarck Tribune, 3/5/1938
"Amsterdam Consul Thinks Fortune In Holland Is Myth", The Roland (IA) Record, 5/5/1927