Blackwell v. Harts

1917 OK 410, 167 P. 325, 66 Okla. 94, 1917 Okla. LEXIS 143
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedJuly 31, 1917
Docket7872
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 1917 OK 410 (Blackwell v. Harts) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Blackwell v. Harts, 1917 OK 410, 167 P. 325, 66 Okla. 94, 1917 Okla. LEXIS 143 (Okla. 1917).

Opinion

Opinion by

COLLIER, C.

This is an action brought by the plaintiff in error, hereinafter styled plaintiff, against defendants in error, hereinafter styled defendants, to remove cloud upon the titles to lands described in the petition, and to recover possession of said lands.

On the trial the plaintiff testified as follows :

“I was living in Durant, Bryan county, Okla., during the years 1908, 1909, (?), 1912, 1913 and 1914, and am living there now-. I purchased the lands in controversy from George A. Dees and Mary E. Wood during the year 1908, the date as shown by the deeds being August 15, 1908. I -paid the consideration as shown in the deeds. I iden *95 tify tile deed executed by George A. Dees as Plaintiff’s Exhibit A, and same is offered in evidence as part of my testimony. After I purchased the lands I rented same to Mr. Gill, who has had charge of the lands for me since that date. There was only a small part of the lands in cultivation. Most of the land was outside land. Mr. Gill cultivated what was in cultivation, and had a contract to place some more of the land in cultivation, and during the year 1912 placed in cultivation enough to make in all about 37 acres in cultivation, and during the same year Mr. Gill fenced the 150aere tract, which is the land purchased from George A. Dees. A part of the 100-acre tract was already in cultivation and had been cultivated by Chas. Marshall, under a contract with Mr. Gill, who acted as my agent. I. had no notice whatever of the fact that these lands had been taxed, and had no notice whatever of the amount of the taxes or that the same was to be sold for taxes prior to the sale. I was not notified personally of the application for a tax deed, and I did not know that such application had been made. I did talk with Mr. Harts about redeeming the land after same had been sold for taxes, and he agreed that if I would pay what he had been out and the expense of the sale, he would convey what interest he had in the lands to me. Later I offered to pay him the money, but at this time he refused to accept it, and refused to convey me the lands. When I talked with him about paying the taxes and redeeming the land the tax deed had not been issued, and so far as I knew no application had been made for a tax deed. At the time I purchased these lands from George A. Dees and Mary E. Wood the lands had been designated as their allotment but they, being Mississippi Choctaws, who had not at that time completed their residence, had not received their patents to the land. Later on, after the patents had been issued, I secured new deeds from each of them. The deed from George A. Dees is identified as Plaintiff’s Exhibit C, and is herewith introduced in evidence as part of my testimony. The deed from Mary E. Wood and husband W. C. Wood is identified as Plaintiff’s Exhibit D and is herewith introduced as part of my testimony. These deeds were taken by me after the grantors George A. Dees and Mary E. Wood had' proven up their continuous residence. ‘There was a small additional consideration paid. I do not remember the. exact amount. When I talked with him about paying the taxes and redeeming the lands, the tax deed had already been issued and recorded. I made no actual tender of the money. I told him I would pay him what he had been out. but made no further tender. I took the last deeds dated in -1911, after the grantors, Geo. A. Dees and Mary E. Wood, had proven up their three years continuous residence. I took these deeds to correct any defect that might exist because of the fact that the first deeds were taken before they had proved three years’ residence. There was only a small consideration paid by me for these last deeds; they having been executed primarily for the consideration paid wlie:q the first deeds were executed.”

A Mr. Gill, witness for plaintiff, testifies as follows:

“My name is Gill. I live west of Ardmore in Carter county, Okla., near the lands in controversy. I looked after these lands for Mr. Blackwell after he purchased same in the year 1908. I rented the part in cultivation to Mr. Marshall for Mr. Blackwell to place a part of same in cultivation, and also fenced a part of the land. During the year 1912 I fenced, or had fenced, the 150-acre tract; the land cultivated by Mr. Marshall being the 100-acre tract. I received rents from the land, but do not know just what the amount was. Mr. Blackwell owned other land adjoining the land in controversy. I had charge of his other lands as well as the land in controversy. The 27 acres of land that I placed in cultivation mentioned by Mr. Blackwell in his testimony was largely on the other land, and not on the land in controversy. I am not sure that any of the field in cultivation was on the land in controversy, as I have not measured it and do not know exactly where the lines run. I received notice from defendant H. B. Harts that he (H. B. Harts) claimed the land under a tax deed. I received this notice at the time I was attempting to fence the land. At this time the land was not fenced and outside land.”

The defendant in his own behalf testified as follows;

“My name is H. B. Harts. I live at Ard-more, Garter county, Okla. I am an attorney at law. I purchased the .lands in controversy when they were offered for sale for taxes, and paid the amount of . taxes required, as is shown by tax receipts and certificate of purchase. I have'since paid the taxes on said lands from year to year as same has been assessed. After having purchased the land I went out to where it was located, and did not find any one in possession, and I went upon the land and posted signs offering same for sale or rent, and attached my name to the sign. It was after I had posted these signs during the year 1912 that Mr. Gill attempted to fence the 150-acre tract. I gave him notice that the land belonged to me and told him that I did not want him to fence it. The fence was later completed and repaired by P. O. Sullivan, with whom I had made a rental contract I now introduce in evidence, as ‘Defendant’s Exhibit 1.’ the rental contract between myself and Mr. Sullivan, and make same a part of my testimony. I also made a rental contract with Chas. Marshall for the 100-acre tract, being Mary E. Wood’s land, under date of August 28, 1912, and said contract is given in evidence herewith and marked 'Defendant’s Exhibit 2,’ I col *96 lected a small rental from said lands from the said parties. I have been in possession of the lands under tenants since that time. .None of the land, to the best of my knowledge, was in cultivation at the time I made the contract with, the two tenants Sullivan, and Mr. Marshall put in part oi the land after I had made the contract with him. 1 had a conversation with Mr. Blackwell subsequent to my purchasing the land in 1912 at the tax sale, and he stated that he had taken no deeds to this land subsepuent to the first deeds he secured in 1908. Later I went to the allottees George A. Dees an Mary E. Wood, and secured from them quitclaim deeds to this land, which I gave as part of my evidence marked ‘Defendant’s Exhibit 3,’ being quitclaim deed from Mary E. Wood and W. O. Wood her husband, dated February 25, 1914. These deeds each recite a consideration of $1 and other good and valuable consideration. I do not remember the exact amount I paid, but I think it was $5 or $10 to each of these parties. At the time I took these quitclaim deeds I did not know that Mir. Blackwell had his deeds executed in 1911.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1917 OK 410, 167 P. 325, 66 Okla. 94, 1917 Okla. LEXIS 143, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/blackwell-v-harts-okla-1917.