Bumgardner v. Edwards

85 Ind. 117
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 15, 1882
DocketNo. 9868
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 85 Ind. 117 (Bumgardner v. Edwards) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bumgardner v. Edwards, 85 Ind. 117 (Ind. 1882).

Opinion

Black, C.

The appellant, Celinda Bumgardner, wife of David Bumgardner, brought suit in December, 1879, for the-partition of a tract of land, being one hundred and twenty-six acres, in Benton county, in this State, claiming to be the-owner in fee simple of the undivided one-third thereof, her title to which she sought to have quieted, alleging that while-holding said interest in said real estate in virtue of her marriage with John J. French, deceased, she had united with her second husband, said David Bumgardner, in a deed purporting to convey it to William W. Parker and Nancy I. Parker, his wife. Said Parkers were made defendants. Jonathan Edwards, The Equitable Trust Company, of-Hartford, Connecticut, and Jonathan Edwards, as trustee of said Equitable-Trust Company, were also made defendants, it being alleged that they claimed some interest adverse to the. plaintiff, by reason of certain mortgages made by said Parkers, and the-foreclosure thereof.

There were other defendants, as to whom no action was-taken, and they are not parties to this appeal. They need not be farther mentioned.

[118]*118The defendant Jonathan Edwards filed an answer, which is not in the transcript.

Jonathan Edwards, as trustee for said Equitable Trust Company, and said company, filed an answer of general denial, • and a cross complaint against the plaintiff and the defendants Parker and wife, and also making defendants to the cross complaint Elizabeth Totheroh and Daniel Totheroh, her husband. Interrogatories were filed with the cross .complaint, and the •appellant answered them under oath. Appellant demurred to the ci’oss complaint, for want of sufficient facts. The demurrer was overruled. Appellant then filed her answer to the cross complaint. The plaintiffs in the cross complaint demurred to the answer thereto. The demurrer was sustained; and appellants, for a second paragraph of answer to the cross complaint, filed a general denial. The defendants Elizabeth Totheroh and Daniel Totheroh answered the cross complaint, •disclaiming all interest in the lands mentioned therein. The Parkers were defaulted.

The cause was tried by the court, an agreed statement of facts, made part of the record by order of the court, being ■ submitted to the court as the evidence.

The court found for the appellee Jonathan Edwards, trustee, • on the appellant's complaint and on the cross complaint. The •appellant moved for a new trial, the only question presented •by the motion being, whether the finding was sustained by :sufficient legal evidence. The motion was overruled, and the court rendered judgment that the appellant take nothing by her complaint; that the appellant and the appellees Parker and Parker, and Totheroh and Totheroh, had no interest in the real estate mentioned in the cross complaint, describing it, being said one hundred and twenty-six acres, as against the mortgage executed by the Parkers to said trustee, -subject to the right, if any, of the Parkers to redeem under the redemption lawsof 1861 and 1879, and that said trustee recover of the appellant his costs, except those incidental to making .the Parkers and the Totherohs parties to the cross complaint.

[119]*119The appellant’s assignment of errors questions the correctness of the action of the court in overruling her demurrer to the cross complaint, in sustaining the demurrer to her answer to the cross complaint, and in overruling her motion for a new trial.

The cross complaint and the answer thereto are very long. The allegations of the cross complaint were sustained by the statement of facts submitted as evidence, and all the questions arising upon the pleadings are involved in the question ■of the sufficiency of the evidence. If the facts agreed to sustain the finding, there was no error in the rulings upon" the demurrers. We will, therefore, not set out the cross complaint or the answer thereto, but will endeavor to abstract the substantial facts agreed upon, the statement in the record being long and complicated.

Said John J. French died intestate, in said county of Benton, in 1863, leaving surviving as his only heirs said Elizabeth Totheroh and Nancy I. Parker, his only children, and appellant, his widow; Elizabeth was then married, said Daniel Totheroh being her husband, and, in 1873, said Nancy ■ was married to said William W. Parker. Said French at "his death was seized in fee of fifty-three acres of land in Illinois, and two hundred and ninety acres in said Benton county, Indiana. Appellant was married to said David Bum■gardner in 1872. In 1874, said William W. Parker sought to obtain from appellant and her husband a conveyance of the land in controversy, which was one of the tracts of which ■said French was seized at his death. Appellant at first objected, but on the 26th of February, 1875, she yielded to the solicitation of said Nancy, and appellant and her said husband then executed a quitclaim deed, which is set out in the •evidence, for the tract of one hundred and twenty-six acres in controversy, to said Nancy I. Parker and her said husband.

On the 16th of August, 1875, said Elizabeth and Nancy, and their said husbands, executed to appellant their deed of quitclaim, which is set out, for all their right, title and interest [120]*120in and to two other parcels of land in said county, together-comprising ninety-seven acres, and being portions of the lands owned by said Fi’ench as aforesaid.

On the 22d of March, 1878, appellant and her said husband, David Bumgardner, and said Nancy and her said husband,, conveyed and warranted to said Elizabeth and her said husband, by a deed-which is set out, twenty-eight acres, being a part of said tract of one hundred and twenty-six acres. This deed purported to be made to correct an error in the description of the land in a deed executed to the same grantees dated May-3d, 1875.

■ The consideration exj>ressed in each of these three deeds was one dollar. 'In each the appellant was described as the widow of John J. French, and said Nancy and Elizabeth were described as his daughters.

It did not appear whether or not any deed of conveyance-of the land in Illinois had been .made. Elizabeth had occupied it since the death of her father.

The interrogatories filed with the cross complaint and appellant's sworn answers thereto were made parts of the agreed statement of facts. In one of her answers, in response to a question as to what agreement for partition of the lands was made, she said: “We never made any satisfactory agreement,, but did make quitclaim deeds in 1875, and one warranty deed in 1878,” being the deeds before mentioned. In answer to another question she said: “We never made'any writings-but the quitclaim deeds, and made no agreement whatever,, except that by over-persuasion, I and my husband signed the deeds.” She also said that she did not know of any other-deeds than those mentioned.

Nancy and her said husband went into possession of said' one hundred and twenty-six acres in 1874. Appellant said : “The reason why they went into possession was that they had no other place, and Wallace Parker” (said Nancy’s husband) “insisted and requested me to let him take possession, and I consented.”

[121]*121.

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Bluebook (online)
85 Ind. 117, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bumgardner-v-edwards-ind-1882.