Kester v. Main Township
Kester v. Main Township
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
The plaintiff claimed that the supervisors of the defendant township so negligently and carelessly changed the natural course of a stream of water and repaired a public highway crossing his lands, near to his dwelling house and gristmill, that the natural flow of water was interfered with, and diverted into his buildings, as to cause him damage and injury in the enjoyment of his property and seriously affect its market value. The defense was that the repairs to the road were necessary, and were made in a careful and proper manner, and further, that all injury to the plaintiff’s property was due to a 'defective construction and arrangement of his buildings and drains, which caused the natural seepage of water through the ground into the cellars of his mill and other buildings.
Before any testimony was offered the jury viewed and inspected the premises, with one counsel of each side acting as a shower, and after an exhaustive trial a verdict was returned for the defendant.
On the trial the plaintiff adduced proof tending to
The defense in this case went to the primary and actual cause of the alleged damage, as well as to the character of the changes made in the public highway, under the law governing such public work, as announced in Edwards v. Williamsport, 36 Pa. Super. Ct. 43, and Metzgar v. Lycoming Township, 39 Pa. Super. Ct. 602.
The case was carefully tried and the verdict is sustained by sufficient testimony to justify the court in refusing a new trial.
The judgment is affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.