Furlow v. Dunn, Admx.

144 S.W.2d 31, 201 Ark. 23, 1940 Ark. LEXIS 328
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedSeptember 30, 1940
Docket4-6023
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 144 S.W.2d 31 (Furlow v. Dunn, Admx.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Furlow v. Dunn, Admx., 144 S.W.2d 31, 201 Ark. 23, 1940 Ark. LEXIS 328 (Ark. 1940).

Opinion

Holt, J.

This litigation grows out of a dispute over the division line between lots 1 and 2, block 8, in the town of Hampton, Calhoun county, Arkansas.

The record reflects that in 1851 N. N. Hunt conveyed to two commissioners for Calhoun county a ten-acre tract of land, in the form of a square, which constituted the original townsite of the town of Hampton. A survey was made of this tract, dividing it into blocks, lots, alleys and streets, and a plat of this survey duly recorded in the recorder’s office at Hampton, where it may now be found. Block 8 was divided into five lots, each containing 5,435.1 square feet, from which it has been determined that each lot is 36.6 feet wide and 148.5 feet long. These lots were occupied and improved and have been so occupied and improved down to the present time.

In the year 1900, A. A. Abies purchased from W. C. Dunn lot 1 of block 8 and occupied said lot and building thereon until he sold said lot to appellant, H. G. Furlow, in 1933. While the deed to the lot was taken in the name of Claudia Abies, the wife of A. A. Abies, the evidence is that he purchased the lot, paid for it himself, paid the taxes as they accrued and exercised control, possession and ownership.

In January, Í913, Porter & Fike purchased lot 2 in block 8. At the time of this purchase there was a vacant space between Abies’ building on lot 1 and the building then on lot 2. The dividing line between the lots ran about midway of this vacant space, each building located a few feet back from this dividing line.

In 1914, there being uncertainty and doubt as to the location of the dividing line, Porter & Fike and Abies agreed upon the dividing line between lots 1 and 2 and dug a well on this dividing line so that one-half of the well would be on lot 1 and the other half on lot 2, the ■line running directly across the center of the well. Abies claimed and occupied the ground south of this well line as lot 1, and Porter & Fike claimed and occupied the ground north as lot 2. This line they, and their successors in title, recognized as the dividing line thereafter.

In 1917, Claudia Abies executed a deed to A. A. Abies, her husband, to lot 1, block 8.

September 30,1925, C. E. Dunn purchased lot 2 from Porter & Fike, removed the old building from the lot and' erected a new one thereon with the south wall resting on a concrete foundation glong the south line of lot 2 across the center of the well. Before the erection of this building by Dunn, he and Abies, the owner of lot 1, agreed upon the dividing line between the two lots as that adopted and established by Abies and Porter & Fike in 1914, which ran across thé center of the well. Both of these parties recognized this line as the true one at all times thereafter, Abies claiming and occupying the ground south of the line and Dunn the ground north of the line.

March 27,1932, the buildings on lots 1 and 2 burned, leaving the old concrete foundation wall across the center of the well, marking the dividing line between the two lots.

May 9,1933, appellant, Furlow, purchased lot 1 from Mr. Abies. In June thereafter, Furlow constructed a building on the south part of lot 1, marking off the lines for the building, himself, without a survey. The north wall of this building rests about fifteen feet south of the old well line and a few feet south of the .north wall of the old Abies building. Appellant, Furlow, also constructed a concrete walk in front of this new building to the north, and ended this walk even with the west end of the old concrete foundation wall which ran across the center of the well.

In 1938, Dunn erected a two-story building on lot 2 with its south wall 9 feet 8 inches north of the old well dividing line between the two lots at the east end and 8 feet 4 inches north of the old line at the west end.

Dunn died October 19, 1938, and appellee, Mrs. Clyde E. Dunn, his widow, was appointed administra-trix and guardian of their minor daughter, Gloria Ann Dunn.

May 22, 1939, appellant, Furlow, removed the old foundation wall running across the center of the well and began preparations for the erection of a building to cover the vacant space between his building on lot 1 and the Dunn building on lot 2, attempting thereby to occupy land claimed by Dunn on lot 2, north of the old well line up to the south wall of Dunn’s building.

Following appellant’s entrance upon the ground between the old well line and the Dunn building on lot 2, appellees brought suit in the Calhoun chancery court to enjoin appellant, Furlow, from entering upon and occupying any part of lot 2 and for consequent damages, and prayed for a decree “establishing the south boundary line of lot 2 in block 8 in the town of Hampton, Calhoun county, Arkansas, as the line running from a point 8 feet 4 inches south of the southwest corner of the two-story brick building now located on a portion of said lot 2, through a point 9 feet 8 inches south of the southeast corner of said building, extending in a straight line to the east side of said block 8 in the said town of Hampton, Calhoun county, Arkansas; that title to the said strip or parcel of land 8 feet 4 inches wide at the west end and 9 feet 8 inches wide at the east end and the entire length of block 8 from east to west, and lying immediately north of the above described line prayed to be established as the south boundary line of said lot 2 in said block 8, be confirmed and forever quieted in plaintiffs. ’ ’

Appellant answered denying every material allegation in the complaint, asked for damages against ap-pellees, and in a cross-complaint made A. A. Abies and his wife cross-defendants.

The chancellor made the following findings of fact:

“The court finds, according to the testimony of the witnesses, the dividing line, between lots 1 and 2, in block 8, in the town of Hampton, involved in this lawsuit, had been in dispute, and then agreed upon by the owners of these adjoining lots, for many years prior to the time that the defendant, H. G. Furlow, purchased lot 1. The dividing line between lots 1 and 2 had been established under the agreement between the owners of the adjoining lots.

“Furlow, at the time of his purchase, knew of the line that had been established between the two lots; that is, what property had been occupied by Dunn and his predecessors in title, on the one hand, and Abies on the other. He went into possession of the lot which he had purchased from Abies, recognizing this line, and with the knowledge that he was purchasing the property occupied by Abies, who had erected a building on the lot, and occupied it. The defendant now occupies the store building which was erected in accordance with a survey, under which the entire town of Hampton seems to have been laid out. Whether or not that survey is correct, I do not know, but the entire town of Hampton was laid out on a different variation to that testified to by the surveyors who have testified in this case.

“Mr. Furlow went into possession, and has improved his lot, upon the assumption that that survey was correct. He cannot now claim the benefit of that old survey, and, at the same time, recover damages from Abies for the failure of his title.

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Bluebook (online)
144 S.W.2d 31, 201 Ark. 23, 1940 Ark. LEXIS 328, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/furlow-v-dunn-admx-ark-1940.