Dawson v. Graham
Dawson v. Graham
Opinion of the Court
The facts clearly, and without even conflict, established by the testimony, are as follows: In the winter of 1865-6, the defendant and twenty-five others organized the Buffalo Creek Oil Company.
In February, 1866, this company made a purchase from plaintiff of about half an acre of oil land, known as lot 13, for which they were to pay six thousand five hundred dollars. Fourteen hundred dollars were paid in cash, and the balance in notes, of which the note in controversy was one.
One Samuel Watt originally owned 26 acres of oil land, divided into lots, and including said lot number thirteen.
On the 1st day of April, 1861, Samuel Watt executed to John S. Stewart, as trustee for the Island Bun Union Oil Company, a lease of said premises, the lease requiring said company to commence exploring for oil, salt water and minerals within three months from the date of the lease, or forfeit their rights thereunder.
At the time plaintiff sold to the Buffalo Creek Oil Company, Dawson, Donahoe and Kuhn had purchased the twenty-six acres above named from Samuel Watt, and plaintiff had purchased said lot thirteen from Dawson, Donahoe and Kuhn, but Watt had made no deed to Dawson, Donahoe and Kuhn, nor
In order to save trouble and expense in deeding the plaintiff, on the 15th day of March, 1866, procured Samuel Watt, and May, his wife, to deed said lot thirteen to Wm, A. Jami-son, in trust for the Buffalo Creek Oil Company.
On the same day Samuel Watt and wife deeded to Dawson, Donahoe and Kuhn, the twenty-six acres sold to them, with the exception of said lot thirteen, deeded to the Buffalo Creek Oil Company. The Buffalo Creek Oil Company were not satisfied with the deed from Watt, but wanted one, for some reason, from Dawson.
Thereupon the plaintiff, on the 30th day of May, 1866, procured a deed from Dawson, Donahoe and Kuhn for said lot thirteen, and, on the next dajr, plaintiff deeded said lot to the oil company. At this time the parties overlooked the fact that Watt had not deeded lot thirteen to Dawson, Dona-hoe and Kuhn. When this fact was discovered, on the 3rd day of June, 1872, Samuel Watt and his wife deeded lot thirteen to the plaintiff, thus perfecting the title of the oil company through this chain. The court, amongst other things, instructed the jury as follows : “Before you can find for the defendant, you must be satisfied from the evidence that the title made or caused to be made by the plaintiff’ to the Buffalo Creek Oil Company has wholly failed.”
The only complaint made upon the trial, by the defendant, of plaintiff’s title, grows out of the lease before named to Stewart.
Reversed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.