Williams v. Davis
| Decision Date | 02 March 1967 |
| Docket Number | 4 Div. 261 |
| Citation | 280 Ala. 631,197 So.2d 285 |
| Parties | Wyatt WILLIAMS v. J. F. DAVIS et al. |
| Court | Alabama Supreme Court |
Halstead & Whiddon, Headland, for appellant.
Farmer & Farmer, Abbeville, for appellees.
This is an appeal from a decree entered in a suit to establish a disputed boundary line.
The complainants were the heirs of W. E. Davis. The land in question is located in Section 34, Township 9, Range 29 east in Henry County. J. F. Davis, one of the complainants had bought a tract of land from C. E. Richardson in 1946. A portion of this land was in Section 34, supra. Apparently J. F. Davis mortgaged this land to his father and in 1952, the father, W. E. Davis, foreclosed the mortgage and was the owner of record at the time of his death, and hence his heirs were such owners at the time of the suit below.
Wyatt Williams, the respondent below, holds record title to land situated in Section 33, Township 9, etc. Section 33 and 34 adjoin. He has never paid taxes on any land in Section 34.
In the court below it was Williams' contention that he, and his predecessors in title, acquired title and interest beyond the section boundary line over into Section 34 by adverse possession and prescription, and that the true boundary line is the dividing line between the Davis land and that portion of Section 34 acquired by Williams by adverse possession and by prescription, and that the section line is not the true boundary line between the properties.
Williams testified that he and Davis had had disputes about the boundary line ever since he had acquired his land.
In 1949, Davis erected a wire fence on what he contends was on his land. Williams came to him and told him the fence was not on the line between them, and he replied that he knew it was not, that he had reason to believe he was several hundred feet east of his line, and he was only putting up the fence to tie into another fence and thereby make an enclosure. The fence did not run in a straight line, but zigzagged from tree to tree and occasionally to a post.
Williams suggested they have a survey made, and Davis agreed, and both agreed to be bound by the survey. Davis testified that he and Williams agreed that any cultivation on the disputed strip by Williams was to be permissive pending the survey to establish the true boundary line.
Williams denied that any such agreement or arrangement was made at any time.
It appears that two surveys of the boundary line were begun by separate surveyors, a Mr. Pickett and a Mr. Mobley. According to Davis, Mr. Williams, after each survey was begun, found fault with the surveyor's procedures, and the surveys were discontinued. Williams testified that he did not employ the first surveyor, but that Mr. Calhoun employed him. Mr. Calhoun owned no land in the vicinity at the time. Mr. Williams also testified that the second surveyor had been employed by Mr. Johnson, and Johnson had told him to tell the surveyor to quit after the first day. Even so, Williams testified that it was he who had paid the surveyor on this second survey.
This has been a most tedious record to review. Plats were introduced in evidence. These plats were used in examining witnesses. There are questions such as, 'Did you run that line across there?', and during the examination of the appellant, , and
Polk Branch is not represented on the plats. There is also testimony as to the location of other lands adjoining or nearby. Such lands are not shown on the plats, and much of such testimony is confusing.
When some of the witnesses were being examined, the plats were obviously being used. The points identified as 'there' and 'Polk Branch along here somewhere' is meaningless without further information. The trial court could observe the finger pointing. He saw and heard the witnesses testify. His findings will not be disturbed unless palpably wrong. The evidence is in hopeless conflict, and some of it is rendered useless to us by vague references to unidentified points on the plats. See Christian v. Reed, 265 Ala. 533, 92 So.2d 881.
At the conclusion of the evidence the trial court concluded that a survey by a competent engineer would be helpful to the court in determining the issues involved and retained the services of Botts and Ray, civil engineers of Troy, Alabama, to survey the boundaries. The court set aside the original submission, and reopened the case to take the testimony of Mr. Ray, following his survey of the boundary.
Upon completion of this testimony, the cause was again submitted and the Chancellor thereafter entered a decree finding the boundary line between the complainants to be the section line between Section 33 and 34, supra, as...
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Yaquina Bay Timber & Logging Co. v. Shiny Rock Mining Corp.
...are: Sanchez v. Taylor, 377 F.2d 733, 739 (10th Cir. 1967); Prestwood v. Hunt, 285 Ala. 525, 234 So.2d 545 (1970); Williams v. Davis, 280 Ala. 631, 197 So.2d 285, 288 (1967); Turnipseed v. Moseley, 248 Ala. 340, 27 So.2d 483, 170 A.L.R. 882 (1946); Noland v. Wise, 259 S.W.2d 46 (Ky.1953); F......
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Kubiszyn v. Bradley
...need show only dominion over the land claiming it adversely as to the whole world for the required time.' Williams v. Davis, 280 Ala. 631, 633, 197 So.2d 285, 287 (1967). See also Cambron v. Kirkland, 287 Ala. 531, 253 So.2d 180 Appellants contend that these necessary elements have not been......
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Prestwood v. Gilbreath
...need show only dominion over the land claiming it adversely as to the whole world for the required time.' Williams v. Davis, 280 Ala. 631, 633, 197 So.2d 285, 287 (1967). See also Cambron v. Kirkland, 287 Ala. 531, 253 So.2d 180 'The rule of our cases is to effect that if a landowner holds ......