LAKEPORT, Calif. – Was it love or was it treachery?

That was what Judge Morton Sayre had to decide in the famous 1905 trial that determined the validity of the will of the deceased heiress Harry Floyd Gopcevic.

A huge fortune was at stake, and witnesses and reporters from around the world converged in Lakeport for the trial.

The trial will be the topic of the next general membership meeting of the Lake County Historical Society, to be held this Sunday, March 10, at 2 p.m. at the Old County Courthouse Museum in Lakeport, in the same room the trial itself was held.

Phil Smoley, the president of the LCHS, will be making the presentation.

Smoley has been researching the Floyd family for many years, and recently came upon a bit of information that he calls a “bombshell” as it relates to the trial, and he will be revealing his findings during the presentation.

“The story includes romance, nobility, espionage, double dealing, a pirate, tragedy, and myriads of unanswered questions,” said Smoley. “It’s the stuff that novels are made from, and it happened right here in Lake County.”

Admission is free and refreshments will be served.

For more information, contact Phil Smoley at 707-264-4905.