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Completed in 1919, the Newby-McMahon Building in Wichita Falls, Texas, has long been a sore spot for locals. Ripley's Believe It or Not! once referred to the 40-foot-tall building as the "World's Littlest Skyscraper," and it is perhaps one of the most peculiar cases of small-town chicanery to come out of the early 20th century.

Newby-McMahon Building, World's Littlest Skyscraper, image by Flickr user Dan via Creative Commons

The brainchild of oil man J.D. McMahon, a proposal to build a highrise addition to the existing Newby Building was initially met with enthusiasm on behalf of local investors. McMahon was able to secure an upfront deposit of $200,000 ($2.8 million in 2017 dollars) before setting to work on the structure.

Newby-McMahon Building (1906) and "skyscraper" addition (1919), image by Michael Barera via Wikimedia Commons

The highrise addition was constructed while the owners of the attached Newby Building (1906) were away. Investors believed the tower would eventually rise to an impressive final height of 480 feet — thus positioning it as the tallest building in Wichita Falls — and quickly recognized the scam, as the diminutive four-storey tower would obviously be significantly shorter than advertised.

Newby-McMahon Building, sunset silhouette, image by Flickr user Dan via Creative Commons

Angered by the perceived swindling, the investors took McMahon to court, claiming that he had sold them on a proposal for a highrise of 480 feet, and had instead delivered a structure of a mere 40 feet, less than one tenth the size they had agreed to. However, after review of the proposal and related contract, the judge ruled in favour of McMahon, finding that he had never once promised a building of 480 feet. The blueprints clearly stated that the finished tower would stand at 480 inches, a detail that all but McMahon had failed to grasp.

Newby-McMahon Building, image by Travis K. Witt via Wikimedia Commons

While McMahon slipped from town unscathed — taking the investors' money with him — the tower remained as a symbol of humiliation for the small town, when Wichita Falls' big-city aspirations had been dashed by a silver-tongued huckster. Today one of Wichita Falls' most popular attractions, the tower is a registered historic landmark, and the "World's Littlest Skyscraper" has become a local favourite.

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