Jeanblanc v. Sweet

632 N.E.2d 623, 260 Ill. App. 3d 249, 198 Ill. Dec. 293
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedApril 6, 1994
Docket2—92—1294, 2—92—1295 cons.
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 632 N.E.2d 623 (Jeanblanc v. Sweet) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jeanblanc v. Sweet, 632 N.E.2d 623, 260 Ill. App. 3d 249, 198 Ill. Dec. 293 (Ill. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinion

JUSTICE DOYLE

delivered the opinion of the court:

Plaintiffs, Earnest and Dorothy Jeanblanc (collectively referred to as Jeanblancs), brought separate actions for ejectment and damages in the circuit court of Ogle County against (1) defendants Willis and Lola Brantner, individually and as cotrustees under a private trust agreement dated March 26, 1991, known as the Brantner Private Trust Agreement, and the Brantner Private Trust Agreement (collectively referred to as the Brantners); and (2) defendants William and Mary Sweet (collectively referred to as the Sweets). Plaintiffs and defendants filed cross-motions for summary judgment, pursuant to section 2 — 1005 of the Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/2—1005 (West 1992)), on the issue of the ownership of the lands in question. The trial court determined that plaintiffs owned the lands in question in fee and were not barred from asserting their ownership interest under the limitations provision of section 13 — 114 of the Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/13—114 (West 1992)). The trial court entered partial summary judgment in favor of plaintiffs and against defendants, reserving only the issue of damages. The trial court made a specific finding pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 304(a) (134 Ill. 2d R. 304(a)).

Defendants filed separate, timely appeals in this matter from the trial court’s order of partial summary judgment. The sole issue raised is whether a genuine issue of material fact remained regarding the right, title, and interest of the parties in the subject lands.

This case arises from the acquisition and subsequent sale of lands by the Illinois Central Railroad. In 1850, the Federal government granted the State of Illinois, among others, a 200-foot-wide right-of-way through unopened Federal lands for the purpose of constructing a railroad line. (9 Stat. 466 (1850) (hereinafter the Act of 1850 or Act).) The same Act also granted Federal rights in certain public lands adjacent to the land grant railroad right-of-way which were to be sold by the State of Illinois to finance construction of the new railroad. (9 Stat. 466 (1850).) In 1851, the State of Hlinois incorporated the Illinois Central Railroad Company (Illinois Central) to lay out and construct a railroad under the Federal land grant of 1850. (17th Ill. Gen. Assem., 1st Sess. Private Laws, at 61 (1851).) Illinois Central was given the power to select and sell adjacent sections of land to finance the new railroad, and the State of Illinois authorized the governor to deed such right-of-way and adjacent lands to Illinois Central. (17th Ill. Gen. Assem., 1st Sess. Private Laws, at 61 (1851).) The governor of Illinois subsequently deeded the aforementioned right-of-way and power to select and sell adjacent lands to Illinois Central. The subject lands in the present dispute were among those mentioned in these Acts and instruments.

On April 18, 1855, a 200-foot-wide right-of-way running north and south through section 4 of Buffalo Township, Ogle County, Hlinois, was quitclaimed to Illinois Central. This section of the right-of-way contains the lands under dispute in the present case. Illinois Central operated a railroad along this right-of-way from April 1855 until approximately 1983.

On September 21, 1855, Illinois Central executed a warranty deed which conveyed to Zenas Aplington "the North Fractional Half of Section Four (4) Township Twenty Three (23) North Range Eight (8) East of the Fourth (4th) principal meridian containing, according to Government Survey, 702.56 acres. Reserving and excepting from the conveyance hereby made a strip or tract of land running through the parcel hereby conveyed 200 feet in width of which the center line is the center line of the track of the Hlinois Central Rail Road as the same is now laid out or constructed and extended for width 100 feet distant each way from said center line of said Rail Road track.”

The parcel purchased by Zenas Aplington was later divided among various parties. In 1971, the Sweets acquired an approximately 150-acre section of the "Aplington” property located in the northwest corner of section 4. The warranty deed they received purported to convey a parcel of land running West from Illinois Central’s railroad "EXCEPT a strip of land 100 feet wide across the East end of said land for said railroad right of way.” In 1976, the Brantners acquired an approximately 114-acre section and an approximately 10-acre section of the "Aplington” property, both of which were to the south of the Sweets’ property. The warranty deed they received purported to convey a parcel of land running West from Illinois Central’s Railroad, and it stated that "[t]his conveyance is subject to *** the right of way of Illinois Central Railroad.”

In 1986, Illinois Central quitclaimed to plaintiffs "[a]ll of the East 50’ in equal width of the original 200’ wide right-of-way *** extending southerly across the E/2 Fractional Section 4, T. 23 N., R. 8 E., Fourth P.M., Ogle County, Illinois, a distance of approximately 4318.38’ as measured along the East line of said 50’ strip, from the South line of the North 218.79’ of said E/2 Section 4, to the South line of the North 4537.17’ said E/2 Section 4.” In 1990, Illinois Central quitclaimed to plaintiff Dorothy Jeanblanc, individually, a section of land described as "T. 23 N. R. 8 E., Fractional Section 4 — All of Grantor’s original 200’ wide right of way, extending southerly across the N 3U of the W 1h E 1/2 to the South line of said N 3U; LESS AND EXCEPT from the last described parcel that 50’ x 4318.38’ strip conveyed to [plaintiffs] by deed dated April 21, 1986.”

Plaintiffs filed the present actions against defendants for ejectment pursuant to section 6 — 101 et seq. of the Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/6—101 et seq. (West 1992)) from the above-described portions of the former right-of-way. Plaintiffs sought an adjudication of the title and interests of the parties and damages. The Brantners counterclaimed to quiet title and recover damages. Plaintiffs then filed a motion seeking partial summary judgment adjudicating, for all purposes of the litigation, that, since June 1, 1990, they owned the subject lands in fee. The Brantners filed a cross-motion for summary judgment asserting that there was no genuine issue of material fact and seeking an adjudication in their favor on the issues of ownership and liability with respect to their portion of the subject lands. The Sweets asserted that there were genuine issues of material fact as to their claim to ownership in their portion of the subject lands and as to the nature and extent of Illinois Central’s title or interest in same at the time of the conveyances to plaintiff.

The trial court ruled that there was no genuine issue of fact as to whether Illinois Central received the subject lands in fee simple and that the parties’ rights regarding those lands rested upon the construction of the deeds and the nature of the estates conveyed. Also, the trial court determined that the language used in the conveyances after 1856 did not limit the fee simple estate held by Illinois Central and granted summary judgment in favor of plaintiffs and against defendants regarding all issues of ownership of the subject lands and liability.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
632 N.E.2d 623, 260 Ill. App. 3d 249, 198 Ill. Dec. 293, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jeanblanc-v-sweet-illappct-1994.