Highpoint Travel Bug Motel
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Located in Highpoint Scenic Vista & Recreation Area, 79 acres of scenic meadowlands located on top of a hill over-looking the Susquehanna River. This park was created in 2007 and provides spectacular views of the Susquehanna River. The 193-mile Mason-Dixon Trail runs through the park. Placement of this cache is approved by the York County Department of Parks & Recreation. After finding this cache, walk to the top of the vista and behold the beautiful view of the Susquehanna River.
Although I originally chose High Point as my first cache hide for its stunning view of the Susquehanna River and lack of nearby caches, I slowly began to learn of the location’s ominous past. Our first trip to High Point armed with the letterboxing Get Outdoors and Be Creative booklet from the local library and my 17 month daughter giggling on my back as we hiked through wildflowers to the view of the Susquehanna River that snakes through Lower Windsor Township hardly brought to mind the slaughter of the Susquehannock tribe, conspiracy, 41 plaintiffs in a class action suit, bankruptcy, outstanding debt in the ballpark of $10 million and a heated debate over eminent domain.
The story of this hotly debated tract of land takes us back in history before the arrival of the Europeans when the Susquehannocks dominated the area. A well-organized and warlike tribe, the Susquehannocks depended on the river for its source of food, ease of travel, and later with the arrival of the Europeans, its access to trade routes. The tribe built multi-family longhouses on the banks of the Susquehanna River settling on both the now Lancaster and York sides of the river, including the area later known as Lauxmont farm. The transfer of property began with benign negotiations between William Penn and the many tribes that occupied the lands on the Susquehanna River. Later, fighting between tribes and outraged white settlers either chased away members of the Susquehannock tribe or brutally murdered them. According to the National Register of Historical Places, the land surrounding High Point is the last known village of the Susquehannock Indians dating back to the late 1600s.
The modern day story of conspiracy, bankruptcy and eminent domain also begins with a benign transaction in 1973 when Ron Kohr Sr. purchased the 1,400 acre farm overlooking the Susquehanna River. With pastures overgrown with brush and sumac and a mansion that had not been painted or wallpapered in years, Kohr’s wife, Laura, saw little potential in the place. However, working together, the couple restored the place, raised both cattle and horses, and even opened a wedding venue. Living in harmony with neighbors and providing jobs to those needing an income, the charismatic Ron Kohr Sr. earned the respect and trust of his neighbors. Problems in paradise began however when Kohr began investing in racehorses. According to documents filed in U.S. District Court in four different lawsuits against Kohr, the turmoil started in 1978 and continued through 1981. Kohr established three business entities offering and selling interests in a series of limited partnerships. The investors would own part of a racehorse or racehorses and then would receive returns on their money when the horse would earn money by racing and/or breeding. According to circulars created by Kohr, the investors would pay market value for their share in the horses. Many people invested because they were looking for a tax shelter; basically they could write off their expenses on their income taxes. However, the Kohrs sold many shares of the same horse to multiple investors. The lawsuit alleges that the investors ended up paying anywhere from 3 to 218 times the actual worth of the horse. For example, one particular horse named “Superstructure,” sold shares that totaled $550,000. In another case, the Kohrs purchased a foal for $11,000 and ended up selling it for $1.2 million to the investors. To inflate the price of the horses, the Kohrs would sell the horses to paper companies that the Kohrs themselves had created for that purpose.
Investors realized that they were victims of fraud around the same time that the IRS decided that Laumont’s limited partnerships weren’t legitimate tax shelters and demanded thousands of dollars in back taxes. The Lauxmont defendants responded to the law suits by denying all of the charges and demanded proof of the charges. However, in 1989, Kohr and his wife filed for bankruptcy mooting the plaintiff’s claims. Over the next decade, Kohr would attempt to settle his bankruptcy case and eventually agreed to a settlement of $1 million with the limited partnership investors who have yet to be paid to this day.
In 2002, Lower Windsor Township began debates about purchasing Lauxmont Farms to preserve the land along the Susquehanna River and to assist the Kohr’s in paying back its debtors. However, the Kohrs submitted a plan to sell the land to a development company that wanted to develop 676 luxury homes starting at $800,000. The county wanted to purchase 825 acres of Kohr’s land. The original plan for the park consisted of Native American Indian heritage center, hiking trails and picnic areas. The York County Board of Commissioners was split on the issue. Two county commissioners supported the park while one sided with the Kohrs and opposed the park. The issue of the park raised strong feelings in the county both pro and con. Pro-parkers argued that a beautiful stretch of land could be lost to developers while others found the park a disturbing example of government trampling on private property rights. After many negotiations, only 79 acres of the land became a park called Highpoint. The other suits were settled out of court, so the Kohrs were never formally charged.
When I decided on the location for my first hide, I never thought that I would pick a spot so riddled with heated debate. Although many citizens failed to agree of the destiny of this park, most people cannot argue that this location is filled with history, science, politics and natural beauty.
To encourage people to visit this lovely area I’m designating this cache as a travel bug motel. Cachers are looking for a 2.5 liter lock & lock container. Please only take a travel bug if you plan on leaving one and don’t leave anything unless it’s a trackable item. The initial contents include 3 travel bugs and 2 geocoins.
Congratulations to RockGuitaristJay for being the first to find, and special thanks to Tom Joyce of The York Daily Record for providing a slew of background information and newspaper articles on the park.
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