Home/Supreme Court of North Carolina/County of Guilford v. Porter

County of Guilford v. Porter

87 S.E. 252, 170 N.C. 310, 1915 N.C. LEXIS 392
CourtSupreme Court of North Carolina
DecidedDecember 8, 1915
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 87 S.E. 252 (County of Guilford v. Porter) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of North Carolina primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
County of Guilford v. Porter, 87 S.E. 252, 170 N.C. 310, 1915 N.C. LEXIS 392 (N.C. 1915).

Opinion

Clark, C. J.

The county of Guilford purchased the property now known as the courthouse square in Greensboro from several persons. On 28 June, 1858, it purchased from Solomon Hopkins the ground upon which the present courthouse stands. By ch. 16, Laws 1872-1873, the commissioners of Guilford were authorized to build a new courthouse and to enlarge the public square and, for that purpose, to purchase additional real estate surrounding said courthouse in order to lessen the danger from fire.

Pursuant to said act a deed was executed to the county by A. A. Hinton 1 February, 1873, for that portion of the present square marked on the map, “from Hinton.” This deed was in fee simple and mentioned no easement of any kind. On 3 February, 1873, the county purchased the lot north of the Hopkins purchase, marked on the plat, “from Staples,” and a deed in fee simple was executed to the county therefor, the deed to this lot stating that part of the consideration therefor was the conveyance by the county of a certain piece of land in exchange therefor, and on the same day the county of Guilford conveyed to Staples the lot just north of the property conveyed to the county by him, to wit, the lot marked on the map, “from Mendenhall,” and in this deed by the county was the reservation that the county agreed that the “lot or parcel of land lying between said brick building and the courthouse on which formerly stood the office of O. B. Mendenhall shall forever he kept open as vacant and unoccupied ground, except such obstructions as may be made by shade trees thereon planted, and they shall not he planted within twenty feet of said brick building, and then only in such manner as will leave free ingress and egress to said brick building on the south side thereof.”

This lot has since been purchased by the county from W. P. Bynum before this action was brought, and a deed therefor has been executed to the county in fee simple. Neither the lot purchased by the county from Staples nor the lot exchanged to Staples and since reeonveyed by his assignee, Bynum, to the county, adjoins any property of the defendants, nor did it adjoin any property of W. 0. Porter and W. A. Caldwell.

On 4 February, 1873, the county of Guilford purchased from Ealph Gorrell the tract marked on the map, “from Gorrell,” and obtained a deed in fee simple therefor, with no condition or easement mentioned therein.

On 5 February, 1873, the county purchased from ~W. 0. Porter the lot marked on the map, “from Porter,” and in said deed was a provision *313 tbat said lot “stall be used by tbe said party of the second part as a public square and be forever kept open for that purpose, and should any building or structure of any character inconsistent with said purpose be erected thereon the said party of the first part, his heirs or assigns, may enter upon the land herein conveyed and abate and remove any and all buildings or any parts of buildings inconsistent with its use as aforesaid.”

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Related

Barker v. Jefferson Standard Life Insurance
107 S.E. 10 (Supreme Court of North Carolina, 1921)
County of Guilford v. Bynum
107 S.E. 8 (Supreme Court of North Carolina, 1921)
Terry v. Thompson & Bros.
95 S.E. 1010 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1918)
County of Guilford v. Porter
88 S.E. 855 (Supreme Court of North Carolina, 1916)
Guilford v. . Porter
83 S.E. 564 (Supreme Court of North Carolina, 1914)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
87 S.E. 252, 170 N.C. 310, 1915 N.C. LEXIS 392, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/county-of-guilford-v-porter-nc-1915.