Lynch v. Northwestern Laundry

194 Iowa 317
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedSeptember 19, 1922
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 194 Iowa 317 (Lynch v. Northwestern Laundry) 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
Lynch v. Northwestern Laundry, 194 Iowa 317 (iowa 1922).

Opinion

Arthur, J.

I. The question for decision is whether the platted lot line of the properties in question, or a line a fraction over two feet east of the platted lot line, is the true divisional and boundary line of the properties.

[318]*318Prior to 1880, a man by the name of Stone, and his wife, owned Lots 3 and 4 in Block 26, Campbell & McMullen’s Addition to Port Des Moines, now included within the city of Des Moines. The wife held title to Lot 3, and the husband had the title to Lot 4. In November, 1880, the Stones conveyed Lot 3 to W. W. Witmer, and in the same year, Witmer conveyed to Polk and Hubbell, and in May, 1887, Hubbell conveyed his interest to Polk. J. S. Polk having died in 1907, appellant Mildred P. Hippee became the owner of Lot 3, under the will of Polk, and now owns said lot.

In November, 1887, the Stones conveyed the east half of Lot 4 to J. M. Coggeshall. In January, 1919, the heirs of Coggeshall conveyed to plaintiff, Annabelle Flynn Lynch. On July 9, 1919, Annabelle Flynn Lynch sold, by written contract, to the Des Moines Improvement Company. Afterwards, in obedience to decree entered in a suit in equity in the Polk district court, April 15, 1920, Lynch conveyed to Des Moines Improvement Company, under date of July 31, 1919.

Appellant Northwestern Laundry Company held a lease from appellant Mildred P. Hippee of Lot 3. Appellant A. Sugarman engaged in a contract with the Laundry Company to erect a building for the Laundry Company on Lot 3, and began excavating for a basement' of the building up to the platted line between Lots 3 and 4. Excavation across and beyond the line which plaintiff and intervener claim to be the true divisional line between Lots 3 and 4, a line some two and a fraction feet east of the platted lot line, precipitated this litigation.

Plaintiff then began this action to enjoin trespass upon her property, and to have established the line claimed by her as the true divisional or boundary line of said Lots 3 and 4, or rather, Lot 3 and the east half of Lot 4. Afterwards, the Des Moines Improvement Company, as purchaser of the east half of Lot 3 from plaintiff, intervened, and asked to be subrogated to all the rights of plaintiff and her preceding grantors, and joined in plaintiff’s prayer for relief. A temporary injunction issued, restraining defendants from removing any soil or trespassing beyond the line claimed by plaintiff and by intervener to be the true line. On December 31, 1920, on final hearing, the [319]*319court found for the plaintiff and the intervener, made the injunction permanent, and established as the boundary line between the two properties the line contended for by plaintiff and the intervener, namely, a line 2.53 feet east of the platted lot line. From, this decree this appeal is prosecuted.

II. The court found that, for considerably more than 10 years last past, the division line between the east half of Lot 3 and Lot 4 had been on a line east of the platted lot line dividing said lots, and that said division line has been acquiesced in and valuable improvements with respect thereto have been made by the owners of said lots and their respective grantors for such a period of time as that said division line, so acquiesced in, has become and should now be established as the true boundary line between the properties. Decree was entered, establishing the line contended for by plaintiff and intervener, describing the location of the line by measurements.

To sustain the claim of plaintiff and intervener, evidence was introduced to prove, and we think it does establish, that the boundary line between the two tracts consisted of a fence, running from the north line of the lots south to a barn, which stood at the rear end of Lot 3; and that from that point the west line of the bam continued the line of the fence to the alley, and served as a boundary separating the properties. It was also shown that the fence was connected to two posts at either end of the east line of a porch upon the house which has stood for 50 years, and is now there, on the east half of Lot 4. This porch extends some two and one-half feet east of the east foundation line of the house, and the east line of the porch formed part of the boundary line. The evidence shows three distinct monuments marking this line claimed by plaintiff and inter-vener to be the true boundary line: the fence, the barn on Lot 3, and the porch of the house on the east half of Lot 4. These three m.onuments stood for many years. The barn on Lot 4 burned, but was rebuilt by Polk, while he owned the lot, on the same line. The fence, originally erected more than 30 years ago, decayed, and was rebuilt on the same line, and stood until recently. The house, built over 50 years ago on the east half of Lot 3, still stands.

H. H. Coggeshall, son of J. M. Coggeshall, testified to his [320]*320father’s obtaining the east half of Lot 4 from the Stones in 1888, and that lie and his mother and two brothers succeeded to the ownership of the property when his father died, in 1889, and of their having possession and control of the property until it was conveyed to plaintiff, in 1919; that he knew J. S. Polk, who owned Lot 4;'that Polk owned and looked after it as long as he could remember.

“There was a fence between our lot and Polk’s lot. I would say it was there 20 some years. I can remember back 20 years. I am 43 years old.”

He said that nothing had come up until recently as to whether the fence was on the correct line between the two lots; that the fence was' taken down six or seven years ago; that Mr. Polk built a barn on Lot 4, and the fence and the west line of the barn were on the same line; that he supposed all the time that the line between the two lots was where the fence was; that ' Mr. Polk never asserted anything to the contrary; that he and his folks claimed to own only to the fence line, and supposed the fence was on the line.

Mrs. Maggie Shead, who-has lived in the house on the east half of Lot 4 since 1890, testified:

“I remember of a fence east of the house between our lot and the Polk lot. It was there when we moved in there. Such fence was ¿bout two feet east of the brick foundation of the house, and right up to the porch line, even with the porch line. It began at the street, and ran back to the barn, and the barn made the line from there to the alley. During all of the time I lived there, I occupied the lot up to the line of such fence. No one on the other side of that fence ever made any objection to the fence as a division line, or undertook to remove it, or anything of that kind. About five years after we moved in there, it rotted down, and my husband tore it down and built it new from the street back to the barn again, on the same line. The porch line still stands, and that was the old line. The line of the porch was the line of the fence. The barn was torn down about a month ago, when they began this excavation. During the time I was there, I never heard a word of objection or protest from the property owners east of me as to that fence line’s being the division line between these two properties.”

[321]*321Sbe further said that the barn on Lot 4 burned down about 20 years ago, and was rebuilt in the same place and on the same line by Mr. Polk. Mrs. Shead further testified:

“We moved into that house [on the east half of Lot 4] in 1890. These planks [of the porch] were nailed to "the fence. The post that was there this morning at the northeast corner [of the porch] was one of the old posts of the fence.”

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Related

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Bluebook (online)
194 Iowa 317, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lynch-v-northwestern-laundry-iowa-1922.