State v. Shaw

28 Iowa 67
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedOctober 11, 1869
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 28 Iowa 67 (State v. Shaw) 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
State v. Shaw, 28 Iowa 67 (iowa 1869).

Opinion

Beck, J.

^oMtaícttve015 ‘ notlce' On the 27th day of June, 1856, the defendants Alexander Shaw and wife executed a mortgage to James D. Eads, as superintendent of pubhe instruction, to secure the sum of $3,000, money of the school fund of the State, borrowed by Shaw of said Eads as a public officer. The mortgage covers lots 9, 10, 11 and 12, in block 5, in the “Town of PeMoinef and also other lands. On the 24th day of January, 1859, Shaw and wife executed a trust deed to J. E. Hull, to secure a note of $391, executed by Shaw to defendant E. J. Ingersoll. The deed describes the property conveyed in the following words : “Lots 9, 10, 11 and 12, in block No. 5, in W. A. Scott’s addition to Des Moines city, now included in the corporate limits of Des Moines, Polk county, Iowa. Said lots, fronting on Tenth street, and lying between Walnut street and Court avenue, and being the premises now occupied as a residence of the parties of the first part.” The property was subsequently (September 6, 1862) sold upon this [70]*70deed of trust, and in accordance with its terms, to the cestui q%t,e trust, defendant Ingersoli.

The questions to be properly considered first, arise upon the foregoing statement of facts.

1. The plaintiff claims, and so avers in the petition, that there was a mistake in the description of the town lots conveyed by the mortgage, of which foreclosure is asked; that the description should have been, “lots 9, 10, etc., in block 5, in W. A. Scott’s addition to De Moine,” which was, in fact, the correct description of the property actually intended to be conveyed by the mortgage. Plaintiff asks in the petition that the mortgage may be declared a lien and foreclosed upon the said property intended to be conveyed therein.

The appellants, Callanan, Ingersoli and Williamson, resist the foreclosure, as to the town lots, for the following reasons:

.1. The mortgage, on account of the misdescription, was not sufficient to impart notice to subsequent incumbrancers or purchasers.

2. The act of Eads, as superintendent of public instruction, in loaning money of the school fund, -was unauthorized by law and illegal, and no subsequent ratification by the State would defeat a lien or title acquired after the execution of the mortgage and before the ratification; and as to such lien or title the mortgage is void.

We will proceed to notice these points made by appellants. It will be necessary, however, to make further statements of facts, disclosed by the record, applicable to the questions here raised. The facts, however, as they bear upon each question, will be separately and distinctly stated. Those bearing upon the point first stated will be first given.

The property involved in this suit was conveyed by W. A. Scott and wife to defendant Shaw by identically [71]*71the same description given to it in the mortgage by Shaw to Eads. Scott was the proprietor, or one of the proprietors, of De Moine. The property, of which Shaw’s lots constitute a part, lies contiguous to the town then called “ De Moine,” in fact, is a part of the same tract of land upon which the town was laid off, but for some reason the plat was not filed for record at the same time with the plat of the town of De Moine.” It was afterward filed. In numbering the blocks in the town certain numbers were omitted, or, in other words, the numbering began at block 8. When the addition was made the blocks therein supplied the place of these omitted numbers in the plat of the town, so that, in fact, block 4 of Scott’s addition corresponded precisely with that block in the town had it been platted with uniformity. There was then, in fact, no block 4 in “ De Moine,” but block 4, Scott’s addition, in location occupied the place of that block had the plan of the town been extended with uniformity of numbering in the blocks.

En view of these facts, did the mortgage to Eads impart notice to subsequent purchasers or incumbrancers that lots 9, 10, 11 and 12 in block 5, W. A. Scott’s addition to De Moine were incumbered thereby ?

It is an admitted rule that a purchaser will be charged - with constructive notice of every thing appearing in any part of the deeds or instruments which prove and constitute the title purchased, and is of such a nature that if brought directly to his knowledge it would amount to actual notice.” 2 Leading Cases in Eq. (Hare and Walace’s Notes), p. 168 (note to Le Neve v. Le Neve); Harris v. Fly et al., 7 Paige Ch. 421; Johnson v. Guothiney, 4 Litt. 320; Honore's Ex'r v. Bakewell, 6 B. Monr. 67.

[72]*72g of lots in flciencynoi ie?~ scnption. [71]*71In the deed of Scott to Shaw, the lots are described as in the mortgage. This deed is a part of Ingersoll’s title; he therefore had notice that the property covered by [72]*72the deed of trust was originally conveyed by the same description to Sbaw, under whom he claims as that by which it was afterward mortgaged by the same party, an d, by consequence, that the property, described as “ lots 9, 10,11 and 12, block 5, in the town of De Moine,” was the identical property described in the trust-deed, and in the deed of the trustee to himself. This, if brought directly to his knowledge, would amount to actual notice. The mortgage to Eads, as superintendent of public instruction, did impart notice to him that “lots 9,10,11 and 12, block 5, in the town of De Moine,” were conveyed therein. The deed of Scott to Shaw, as we have seen, imparted notice to Ingersoll that the property thus described was identically the same that is covered by the trust-deed, and the deed of the trustee to him. We conclude, therefore, that the mortgage operated as notice to Ingersoll that the lots to which he claims title were conveyed therein.

II. We are satisfied from the evidence that Ingersoll did have actual notice of the mistake in the description of the property conveyed by the mortgage. Upon this point the direct evidence is conflicting, Shaw testifying to the fact, and Ingersoll denying it. The circumstances and attendant facts disclosed by the record, to our minds, satisfactorily sustains our conclusion. We will not mention all of them, but only the most prominent and leading ones. As we have above stated, there was no block in the town of “ De Moine ” answering to the description given in the mortgage — Scott’s addition being the completion of the plan of the town by continuing the consecutive numbering of its blocks. In this addition the block numbered to correspond with the one mentioned in the mort gage is found. The proprietors of the town conveyed and contracted to convey lots in ‘ Scott’s Addition,” describing them as in the “ town of De Moine.” • This is [73]*73all explained by the fact that the original survey of the lands intended to be laid off into lots made no distinction as to the part afterward called “ Scott’s Addition,” but included it in the town. When the plat of the town was filed for record, the part afterward described as the addition was omitted, that certain changes might be made, but the plat of the addition was afterward filed without any change in the survey thereof, and as it appeared originally.

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

Related

Silver Lake Consolidated School District v. Parker
29 N.W.2d 214 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1947)
Monona County Ex Rel. School Fund v. Waples
286 N.W. 461 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1939)
Hahn v. Clayton County
255 N.W. 695 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1934)
Clear Lake Co-Operative Live Stock Shippers' Ass'n v. Weir
206 N.W. 297 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1925)
Loser v. Plainfield Savings Bank
128 N.W. 1101 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1910)
Albia State Bank v. Smith
119 N.W. 608 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1909)
Huston v. Scott
1908 OK 10 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1908)
Diver v. Keokuk Savings Bank
102 N.W. 542 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1905)
Chamberlain v. Iowa Telephone Co.
93 N.W. 596 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1903)
Truth Lodge No. 213 v. Barton
93 N.W. 106 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1903)
Farmers' Loan & Trust Co. v. Memphis & C. R.
83 F. 870 (U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Western Tennessee, 1897)
Bless v. Jenkins
31 S.W. 938 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1895)
Ætna Life Ins. v. Bishop
29 N.W. 761 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1886)
Huber v. Bossart
29 N.W. 608 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1886)
Thomas v. Desney
10 N.W. 315 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1881)
Daniels v. Citizens' Ins.
5 F. 425 (U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Indiana, 1881)
Tredway v. McDonald
2 N.W. 567 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1879)
Trustees for the Support of Public Schools v. Inhabitants of Trenton
30 N.J. Eq. 667 (Supreme Court of New Jersey, 1879)
Dickinson County v. Miss. Valley Insurance
41 Iowa 286 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1875)
Clark v. Stout
32 Iowa 213 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1871)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
28 Iowa 67, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-shaw-iowa-1869.