Home/Supreme Court of Iowa/Jeffrey v. Grosvenor

Jeffrey v. Grosvenor

157 N.W.2d 114, 261 Iowa 1052
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedMarch 5, 1968
Docket52875
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 157 N.W.2d 114 (Jeffrey v. Grosvenor) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jeffrey v. Grosvenor, 157 N.W.2d 114, 261 Iowa 1052 (iowa 1968).

Opinion

*116 SNELL, Justice.

This is an action to quiet title to Lot 1 of section 34, township 86, range 47, Wood-bury County, Iowa. The tract contains 37.55 acres and is what is commonly called Missouri river bottom land. We have had many cases involving such land.

We hope that ultimate victory of the Corps of Army Engineers over a stubborn and powerful antagonist, i. e. the Missouri river, will make possible the stabilizing of titles and the diminution of such controversies.

In Sieck v. Godsey, 254 Iowa 624, 625, 118 N.W.2d 555, Mr. Justice Thompson commented:

“This case comes to us by courtesy of the Missouri River and the United States Corps of Army Engineers. The engineers have been for many years engaged in an attempt to enforce some measure of law and order upon this most wandering and capricious of rivers; and in the course of their activities has arisen the situation which gives rise to the present lawsuit.”

In State v. Raymond, 254 Iowa 828, 829, 119 N.W.2d 135, we said:

“Stabilization of the Missouri River channel between Sioux City and Omaha by the United States Corps of Engineers has caused many legal problems to be brought to our attention. This is another such case.”

In Dartmouth College v. Rose, 257 Iowa 533, 535, 133 N.W.2d 687, 689, we said:

“The rules applicable to questions of accretion and title to land so formed have frequently been analyzed by us and need little review here. The parties are not in disagreement over the legal propositions involved. We state some of them briefly.”

The case now before us arose because of a change and stabilization of the river channel to the west with the result that what was formerly of little or no value may now be made useful and valuable.

The trial court commented:

“This is another of many cases reaching the Iowa courts involving the title and rights of owners to land in what is commonly referred to as the ‘Missouri river bottoms.’ These disputes have arisen due to the former proclivity of the river to wander back and forth in a generally easterly and westerly direction, forming new channels and leaving in its wake an assortment of quarrels as to the ownership of land adjacent to it. Because of the number of these disputes which have reached our Supreme Court, the law applicable to them is well settled. As is so often the case, it is the application of this law to the facts involved which raises the more difficult problems here.”

There is one plaintiff and many defendants, known and unknown. The real defendant is Ray L. Grosvenor who claims ownership. Reference will be to him as the defendant.

I. We have had before us maps, survey records and determinations showing the meandering of the river in this territory since 1852.

In 1937 land located south and west of the tract here involved, but within the same river loops, was the subject of litigation in the United States Courts. See United States v. Flower et al., District Court of the United States, District of Nebraska, Omaha Division, #1332 Equity, transferred to Law Docket, affirmed on appeal in 108 F.2d 298.

While the case did not involve the same land as here many of the same maps, exhibits, witnesses and river changes appear.

Lot 1, the tract involved here, is adjacent to Lot A owned by plaintiff. The trial court found that Lot 1 formed by accretion to Lot A and quieted title in plaintiff. We affirm.

To show the location of the tracts we reproduce Exhibit 29.

*117

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157 N.W.2d 114, 261 Iowa 1052, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jeffrey-v-grosvenor-iowa-1968.