Pennsylvania Railroad v. Edgewood Borough
Pennsylvania Railroad v. Edgewood Borough
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
It is immaterial in the decision of this casé whether the conveyance from Kelly vested in the railroad company a fee simple estate, a base or qualified fee, or a mere easement. When the borough by virtue of the power of eminent domain appropriated the strip of land in question for use as a public street, it acquired every right and assumed every burden, enjoyed or borne by a municipality in the appropriation of land for street purposes from a private owner. The fact that the railroad company ivas the owner in no way differentiates the case in principle from that of an individual owner of land so appropriated. If Kelly had conveyed to an individual, and not to a corporation, and the borough had appropriated the land of the individual for street purposes, as it has that of a corporation in this instance, the question of what character of title the individual held could not be raised for the purpose of casting on the owner of the land the duty of caring for a natural water course through, under or over the public streets.
Judgment affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Pennsylvania Railroad Company v. Edgewood Borough
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- Boroughs — Eminent domain — Streets—Railroads. When a borough by virtue of the power of eminent domain appropriates a strip of land belonging to a railroad company for use as a public street it acquires every right and assumes every burden, enjoyed or borne by the municipality in the appropriation of land for street purposes from a private owner; and it is immaterial in such a case whether the railroad company has a fee simple estate, a base or qualified fee, or a mere easement in the land. If a strip of land belonging to a railroad company and condemned by a borough for a public street includes a culvert built by the company, it is the duty of the borough after it has taken the land to repair the old culvert, or, if necessary and convenient, construct a new one.