Cleaver v. Mahanke
Cleaver v. Mahanke
Opinion of the Court
The plaintiff and the defendants are residents of Parkersburg, Iowa. Prior to and on the 8th day of March, 1894, the defendant Elizabeth Mahanke was the
The plaintiff went into possession of the lots under his contract, built a house and barn thereon, and otherwise improved the premises, all with reference to the lot lines and Third street as it was indicated by the Rockwell plat. •Until some time in 1900, he used so much of Third street south of his lots as was necessary for the convenient use of
There are at least two sufficient reasons why the plaintiff should be given the relief asked. It will be observed that the contract not only described the land conveyed by metes and bounds, but that it also describes it as '“outlots 94 and 112 on plat made by Rockwell.” This ■description of the lots and reference to the Rockwell plat must be held to be a recognition and adoption of that plat, not alone as to the particular land or lots. conveyed, but -as to all of its parts so far as it could affect the plaintiff’s private use and enjoyment of the land purchased to such an extent that the defendants are now estopped from interfering therewith. It is a well recognized rule that, where land has been divided into lots, and a plat thereof is made -showing such lots and the streets, and the owner sells lots .so designated on the plat, the purchaser has an easement in such streets as are necessary for the full enjoyment and ■ use of his property, of which the grantor cannot deprive him. Fisher v. Beard, 32 Iowa, 346, and cases cited therein; City of Dubuque v. Maloney, 9 Iowa, 450; McFarland v. Lindekugel, 107 Wis. 474 (83 N. W. Rep. 757); Strunk v. Pritchett, 27 Ind. App. 582 (61 N. E. Rep. 973.) Nor can the fact that the plat was not made or authorized by the grantor, or that it was not a legal or recorded plat, make any difference with the rule. It is founded upon the doctrine of estoppel, and, whether the plat be legal or illegal, authorized or unauthorized, if it be recognized, and .adoptedby the grantor in making the sale, and is relied upon by the purchaser, the estoppel is as effective as it would be were the conditions different. Noonan v. Braley, 67 U. S. 499, (17 L. Ed. 278). See, also, Shea v. The City of Ottumwa, 67 Iowa, 39; Bartlett v. Bangor, 67 Me. 460; Strunk v. Pritchett, supra; Reno v. City of
The motion to strike the appellee’s additional abstract is sustained, and the judgment is REVERSED.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.