Quality Milk Products Co. v. Young

1935 OK 906, 51 P.2d 547, 175 Okla. 98, 1935 Okla. LEXIS 824
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedOctober 1, 1935
DocketNo. 23484.
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 1935 OK 906 (Quality Milk Products Co. v. Young) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Quality Milk Products Co. v. Young, 1935 OK 906, 51 P.2d 547, 175 Okla. 98, 1935 Okla. LEXIS 824 (Okla. 1935).

Opinion

WELCH, J.

This appeal involves the ownership of certain machinery, apparatus, and appliances located in a certain brick building in Sapulpa. The parties are referred to as they appeared in the trial court, where this action was commenced in December, 1931.

The defendant, Quality Milk Products Company, occupied the premises as tenant to January 1, 1932, and claims the ownership and the right to remove the machinery, apparatus, and appliances used and operated by that company in carrying on its business of manufacturing ice cream and handling dairy products. The plaintiff, Glenn O. Young, owns the building and claims also to own the machinery, apparatus, and appliances involved.

Pertinent facts are that the brick building was originally used and occupied as a garage. In 1920, L. K. Jones and Chas. Smith purchased the building for use and occupancy in the manufacturing of ice cream and handling dairy products. They to some extent rearranged the interior of the building, and constructed partitions and installed in the building certain machinery, apparatus, and appliances of considerable value. This machinery was designed for the manufacturing of ice cream and handling dairy products, and consisted in part of heavy machinery, motors, and the like. Some of the heavy appliances were fastened to concrete pedestals for security by bolts, and (here were various fastenings of wire and pipes to the walls and ceilings for security and efficiency.

L. K. Jones and Chas. Smith continued to operate their ice cream and dairy products business until about 1923, when they sold and conveyed all the machinery, apparatus, and appliances to the Southern Ice & Utilities Company, but retained title to the building. This company then leased the building and continued to occupy the same as tenant, and to there use their said machinery and equipment. In 1926, L. K. Jones and Chas. Smith sold the building and lot by general warranty deed to Glenn O. Young. Thereupon the Southern Ice & Utilities Company entered into a contract leasing the building from Mr. Young and continued to so occupy and use the building until 1928. In that year the Southern Ice & Utilities Company sold the machinery, apparatus, and appliances to William Hawkes, who operated the ice cream business, paying the rent to Mr. Young on the building until the year 1929. In that year Mr. I-Iawkes sold the machinery, apparatus, and appliances to the Quality Milk Products Company, and that company operated the ice cream and dairy business, occupying the building as tenant of Mr. Young to January 1, 1932.

On December 10, 1931, prior to the expiration of its term as tenant, the Quality Milk Products Company was about to remove the machinery, apparatus, and appliances from the building, when Mr. Young, claiming to own the machinery, brought suit for injunction and obtained temporary restraining order preventing such removal. The company cross-petitioned for restraining order to prevent Young from removing or appropriating any of the machinery.

The plaintiff, Mr. Young, claims to own all of the items of property, upon the theory that they are attached to the building and became a part thereof, while the company contends to own the machinery by purchase from Hawkes and the Southern Ice & Utility Company, who purchased the same from Jones and Smith in 1923

The trial court found in favor of the defendant as to part of the property involved, and for the plaintiff as to part.

We can best consider the items of property involved in two classifications: First, the items which the trial court found belonged to the defendant, with the right to remove the same, to wit:

“Eight motors; 100 gallon pasteurizing vat; ice crusher; washing vat; steam turbine ; can truck; 60 quart Cherry-Burrell freezer; 40 quart creamery package freezer; can sterilizer; 12 H. P. boiler; and any other miscellaneous machinery and equipment belonging to . the said Quality Milk Products Company and located in said premises; save and except the hereinafter described machinery and property”

—and the second classification being the items described as:

“One York refrigerating machine; line shaft fastened to the ceiling; all partitions, including the walls and cork insulations in the cooling room”

—being the items which the trial court held *100 should be considered as a part of the building aud therefore belonged to the plaintiff.

However, as to the items of property referred to in the second classification, the defendant claims to own the York refrigerating machine only, and waives any further claim to the other items in the second classification, that is, the line shaft, partitions, and cork insulations.

There is testimony that many of the items of property involved are in some manner connected together or attached to the walls, ceiling, or floor of the building. There is evidence that some of the items of property rested upon their own weight without attachment. The method of attachment differs as to the various items of machinery, as the need or necessity differed as to the various items. As to all attachments of the items of machinery, the method of attachment used was necessary for the stability, operation, and efficiency of that respective item of machinery or appliance, in the trade or business. And it is clearly shown by the weight of the evidence that all of the machinery, apparatus, and appliances now involved can be removed without damage to the building itself.

During- all of the time from 1923 to the end of 1931, the Southern Ice & Utility Company and William Hawkes and Quality Milk Products Company maintained the machinery and paid taxes thereon as the owner.

It is elementary that one person may own a building while another owns machinery and appliances used therein in a trade or business. We do not understand that it is claimed otherwise. That, then, was the situation as to this building and this machinery and equipment since 1923. That is, from 1923 to 1926, Jones & Smith owned the building, while the Southern Ice & Utility Company owned machinery and equipment. From 1926 to 1928, Young owned the building, while the same company continued as owner of the machinery. From 1928 to 1929, Young owned the building, while Hawkes owned the machinery. From 1929 to the end of 1931, Young owned the building, which he continues to own, while the defendant, Quality Milk Products Company, owned the machinery, which • it continues to own.

That company had done nothing to lose its title to the machinery and appliances, and the plaintiff, Young, had done nothing to acquire title thereof. The building was not constructed specially to house the machinery or this business enterprise. The original purpose of construction was not shown. It is a brick building on a business street of the city of Sapulpa. It might have had and may yet have a .multitude of uses other than that of rental to the defendant for use in its business. It was occupied by a garage before put to present use. There is nothing- to indicate that Young intended to purchase this business or this trade, or any of its machinery or apparatus, or that he did so, when ho bought the building and lot. The contrary is well indicated.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Incorporated Town of Pittsburg v. Cochrane
1945 OK 88 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1945)
Carte-Caldwell v. Berryhill
1941 OK 119 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1941)
Hall v. Woody
1937 OK 251 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1937)
Potts v. Biggs & Co.
1936 OK 90 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1936)
Quality Milk Products Co. v. Endowment Loan & Mortgage Co.
1935 OK 905 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1935)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1935 OK 906, 51 P.2d 547, 175 Okla. 98, 1935 Okla. LEXIS 824, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/quality-milk-products-co-v-young-okla-1935.