In re City of Seattle

• Decision Date: 13 April 1909
• Parties: In re CITY OF SEATTLE. v. BEACON PLACE CO. et al. SCHLOSSMACHER
• Court: Washington Supreme Court

100 P. 1013

52 Wash. 588

In re CITY OF SEATTLE.

SCHLOSSMACHER v. BEACON PLACE CO. et al.

Supreme Court of Washington

April 13, 1909

Appeal from Superior Court, King County; Mitchell Gilliam, Judge.

Condemnation proceedings by the City of Seattle for the widening of a street, in which the court directed that A. Schlossmacher and the Beacon Place Company and Terry heirs should interplead to determine who was owner of the property taken and entitled to the award. From a judgment in favor of the Beacon Place Company, A. Schlossmacher appeals. Affirmed.

Charles E. Patterson and Charles R. Crouch, for appellant.

Leander T. Turner and Sandford C. Rose, for respondents.

MORRIS J.

In the proceedings to widen Dearborn street, in the city of Seattle a piece of ground 11.34 feet wide by 120 feet deep was condemned, and its value was fixed by the jury at the sum of $2,160. This piece of ground was claimed by A. Schlossmacher the heirs of Chas. C. Terry, and the Beacon Place Company, a corporation, whereupon the court made its order, directing the above parties to interplead in order to determine who was the rightful owner of the property and entitled to the award. Upon such interpleader issues were duly made, a trial was had, and the court entered its decree awarding the damages for the taking to the Beacon Place Company as the rightful owner of the property, from which judgment Schlossmacher appeals.

The first error assigned is that the court failed to make findings of fact and conclusions of law. If this is an equitable action or proceeding, it has long been the established rule in this court that findings of fact and conclusions of law are not necessary in equitable actions. If it be regarded as the trial of an issue of fact by the court the record discloses no request for findings, and this court has uniformly held that a judgment will not be reversed on appeal for want of findings of fact and conclusions of law, where the record fails to show a request for such findings and conclusions, or any objection raised in the court below because of such failure. Washington Rock Plaster Co. v. Johnson, 10 Wash. 445, 39 P. 115; Remington v. Price, 13 Wash. 76, 42 P. 527; Slayton v. Felt, 40 Wash. 1, 82 P. 173. There is therefore no merit in this assignment.

The remaining assignments are based upon the judgment in holding the Beacon Place Company to be the owner of the land in dispute. A better understanding of the facts involved herein will be had by reference to the following diagram:

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The tract of land in dispute is marked B-B-D-D. Schlossmacher claims under a tax deed from the county treasurer, dated December 2, 1902, in which the land conveyed is described as, 'Beginning 66 feet south, 710 east, from southeast corner, block 52, of Maynard's plat; thence north 11.34 feet; thence east 120 feet; thence south 11.34 feet; thence west 120 feet, to beginning'; the initial point being B, on the east line of Tenth avenue south. This description calls for the tract marked E-E-B-B, a strip immediately north of the tract in controversy. The grantor of the Beacon Place Company was one Nelson, by deed dated March 8, 1905, in which the land conveyed is described as: 'Commencing at the southwest corner of lot No. 1, as shown on the plat of Beacon Place; thence running east along the south line of said lot No. 1, 73 feet more or less, to the northwest corner of lot No. 13 on said plat; thence turning and running south to a point 139 feet north of the south boundary line of the tract of land conveyed by D. S. Maynard and wife to Chas. C. Terry, 50 feet more or less; thence turning and running west 120 feet; thence turning and running north to the south line of Dearborn street extended, 50 feet more or less; thence turning and running east 4, feet more or less to the point of beginning.' The initial point of this description is the point F, and the tract in dispute, B-B-D-D, is included therein as the north 11.34 feet of said description. The grantor of Nelson was one Allen by deed dated July 14, 1890; Allen being the grantee in a deed from one Turner, dated November 6, 1883, in both of which deeds the property conveyed is described as: 'Commencing at a point on the south line of the tract of land conveyed by D. S. Maynard and wife to Chas. C. Terry by deed of date July 11, 1857, and recorded in Book B on page 146 of the records of King county, W. T., which point is 255 feet south of and 710 east of the southwest corner of block 52 of D. S. Maynard's Plat of town (now city) of Seattle, and running thence north 139 feet to place of beginning; thence east 120; thence north 50 feet; thence west 120 feet; thence south 50 feet to place of beginning, containing 50 by 120 feet of ground.' The land thus described is the tract of D-D-D-D. This south line of the tract of land conveyed by Maynard to Terry, described as 255 feet south of the southeast corner of block 52 of Maynard's plat was, in fact, 266 feet south of the southeast corner of block 52; Dearborn street being 66 feet wide, and the Terry tract 200 feet long. All of the parties to these various deeds were evidently under the impression that the Terry tract was in...