HOll, Ben L. King 

County attorney 

Burnet County 

Burn&, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion lb. O-7265 

Re: Title to Deed from Scottish 

Ametican Mortgage Co. Ltd. to Board 

of Trustees of F. & T. Consolldatsd 

Common' School.District No. 18, Burn& 

County, Texas, 'and related question. 

We acknowledge your letter of June 3, 1946, requesting an opinion of this department on&he questions therein set out, pertinent pcrtions of vhioh letter we quote for the purposes of this opinion as followst 

"Enclosed herewith is a oertified ccpy of a' 

deed frog~the Scottish American Mortgage Company, 

Ltd. to Board of Trustees of the F & T Consolidated CSD or Wlrnet County, Texas. 

"In this connection the #300 consideration shown 

in the deed was paid at the time the deed was delivered from public free school funds of the grantee district caused the clause you will find at the end of the 

deed inserted, by whioh it was sought to fix the title 

for the benefit of the community rather than the school. 

I . . . 

aJ.fter the dxecut,ion and delivery of such deed to 

such district a school house was oonstrwted thereon 

with funds barrowad by the district on~its bonds. School 

+aa maintained,there for ,several years, but in 1945, as 

a result of an election held in each district, the F & T 

Consdlidated CSD,was consolidated with the Marble Falls 

ISD, and beoame a part of a consolidated district known 

as the Marble Wlls Independent School District. Since 

the ,date,of this last oonsolidationo school has been 

maintained in the schoolhouse on the land conveyed in 

the deed, copy of which is enclosed, and it is not ini:i;r,ded by the school authorities to ever~maintain another school there. The sohoolhouse constructed on such 

land was of rook and cannot be removed as a building. 
Hon. Ben King, Page 2 (O-7266) 

"The proper school authorities desire to sell the 

lot and the building together. This raises the following question whioh I will appreciate your an8wering for 

mar 

atUpon consolidation of the F & T Consolidated CSD 

with Marble Falls ISD, and the removal of the school 

from such premises cweyed in said deed, and the oessation of use of same for school purposes, did the title to 

such lot pass from the school authorities into the last 

Board of Trustees of the F & T Ccnsolidated CSD for the 

use aMbenefit of the community, or is such alause ineffective, and could the proper sohcol authorities now 

sell such lot and the building erected thereon under the 

provisions of law relating to sales of school properties?'" 

The deed referred to in your letter executed on January 11, 

acknowledged on January 23 and recorded on February 2 in the year 1939, in 

the County of Burnet, Burnet, Texas, reads in part as follows: 

"The Scottish Bmerioan Mcrtgage Company, Limited, 

. for and in consideration of the sum of Three Hun- 

&id Dollars (#300.00) to it in hand paid by the Board 

of Trustees of F& T Consolidated Corm&on School District 

of Burnet County, Texas, . . . have GRANTED; SOLD and 

CODVSYED unto the said Board of Trustees . . . ; and to 

their successors in offioe, for school purposes, the 

following described land, . . . in said County . . . t 

"Five and one-half (!&) acres of land, . . e 

(Described) ,,, 

"TOMyG&DTOHOLD., . , together with al.1 and 

singular the Aghts and.appurtenances thereunto in anywise belonging, unto the said Board of Trustees of the 

F & T Consolidated Co8xaon School M&riot So. 18, . . . 

and their successors and assigns, forever, (General warranty clause). 

"It is further a provision ofthie oonveyanoe that in 

the event that said lot may cease to be used for school 

purposes by reason of the removal of the school or for aw 

other reason, then that the title thereto shall vest in 

the individuals ocmprising the last Board of Trusteea of 

the above named sohool district as trustees for the ccmmunity, to be held and administered by them as a trugt, 

and for the use and benefit of all of the people of the 

Fairland and Toby ommaunities." 
Hon. Een King, Page 3 (O-7265) 

We understand thst no bonded indebtedness exists concerning 

the lot or the school building built thereon and that, therefore, no qua+ 

tion of assmnption of indebtedness is herein involved. 

Under the facts submitted, the land was oonveyed to the Board 

of Trustees of the F & T Consolidated School District for school purposes, 

was paid for by said Board with public free school funds of the grantee district, and subsequenttheret8, a school building was constructed on this 

land with funds borrowwd by the granteedistrict on its bonds; that in the 

gear 1945, the.F & T Consolidated Ccnmon School District was acnsc:'idated 

under Art. 2806, V.A.C.S., with the Marble Falls Independent School uistriot 

and became legally a part thereof; that since the consolidationo school 

has been maintained on said land and that presently the~proper soh~ol authorities do not intend aver to maintain a school thereon. 

It is definitely settled, we believe, that a deed of land to 

school trustees "for school purpolsssa wher-in the habendun clause was to 

have and to hold unto the school trustees a8 assignees forever was a conveyance of a fee simple title, and simply that. Gladewater County Line Independent School District v. Hughes, 59 S.i% (2d) 361, and the many oases 

cited therein. The insertion in a deed of land to a school district of the 

words "for school purposes only " does not restrict the title of the district. 

T. W. Phillips Gas & Oil Co., v. Linge'-+elter, 5 A.L.R. 1495. The mere expression of a purpose will not debase a title. Wilson v. County School 

Trustees, 229 S. W. 669, and Gladewater 0888, supra. 

Under the line of oases above quoted, the deed in question 

herein operated to convey a fee simple title in the trustees of the F de T 

Consolidated Common School Trustees, its sucoesscrs or assigns forever, 

in trust for the school or schools of the district in which it is situated, 

provided the clause therein stating in substarrc that in the event the lend 

ceases to be used for school purposes,then title thereto will vest in the 

individual designated therein in trust for Fairland and Toby communities, 

cannot be construed a8 a conditional limitation divesting title, under the 

facts, out of the school distriot trustees, their suooessors andassigns. 

Based on the facts suhnitted in your letter and heroin sunmarized, it is shown the F & T Consolidated Coon School Trustees paid for such 

land with public free school funds and caused the provision to be inserted in 

the deed by vhioh it was sought to fix the title for the benefit ofthe community rather than the school district. We are of the opinion that said provision is ineffectual and therefore is inoperative to divest the fee simple 

title out of the trustees of the school district, their suoess)rs and assigns 

and into the last named individual trustees of the district as trustees for 

the community. 

It is elementary that the F & T Trustees in causing the insertion of such a provision clearly were acting beyond and without the scope of 

their authority as school trustees. They have no authority to give away 

school properties. Furthermore, the grantor having conveyed all the title 
Hon. Ben King, page 4 (O-7265) 

it had in said land, legal and equitable, for the consideration paid 

in hand with school funds, preserving no right of reversion in itself, 

was without right or power to make, or attempt to make a subsequent 

condition of defeasance. Our answer, therefore, to the first part of 

your question is that the title to such lot did not &mss frcmthe school 

authorities into the last Board of Trustees of the F & T Consolidated 

Common School District for the use and benefit of the ammunity. 

Art. 2806, V.A.C.S., as emended by Acts 1945, 49th Leg., p. 

416, Ch. 264 provides in prt as follows: 

I . q . Where one or mars independent school districts are oonsolidated t,gether or with one or more 

common school districts the consolidated districts shall 

constitute an independent school district, and shall have 

all the rights, powers and privileges granted to independent sohool districts by the lawsof this State. 

"If only one independent school district is oonsolidated with one or more ocmmon school districts, the consol dated district shall bear the name of such independent 

school district, and the board of trustees of said independent school district shall serve as the board of trustees of the consolidated district until the next regular 

election of trustees, as prescribed by general law, at 

which time the consolidated district shall elect a board 

of seven (7) trustees, whose powers, duties, and terms of 

office shall be in accordance with the provisions of the 

general laws governing independent school districts, as 

they now exist or may be thereafter enacted; . . .a 

It is our understanding that under the provisions of Art. 2806, 

the F & T Consolidated Common School District consolidated withthe Marble 

Falls Independent School District and the new district is now known as the 

Marble.Falls Independent School District. The powers and duties of the 

Marble Falls Independent School District Board of Trustees, as designated 

by statute, shall be in accordance with the provisions of the general laws 

governing independent school districts. The school properties whioh prior 

to the consolidation were vested in the BDard of Trustees of the F & T 

Consolidated Common School District in trust for that school district are 

now vested in the Board of Trustees of the krble Falls Independent School 

Distriot, the successors in office as designated in the deed, by reason of 

the consolidation of the district, and in accordance with the provisions 

of Art. 2772, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes. 

Art. 2773, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, provides as fol- 
. - 

Hon. Ben L. King, page 5 (O-7265) 

"Art. 2773. Sale of school property. 

'Any houses or lands held in trust by a~ city or 

town for public free sohool purposes may be sold for 

the purpose of imesting in more convenient and desirable school property, with the consent of the State 

Eoard, by the board of trustees of such city or town; 

and, in such case, the president of the school board 

shall execute his deed to the purchaser for the same, 

reciting the resolution of the State Board giving 

consent thereto and the resolution of the board of 

trustees authorizing such sale." 

Under the facts submitted and for the purpose as set out in 

Art. 2773, it is the opinion of this department that the proper school 

authorities of the Marble Falls Independent School District now can sell 

such lot and the buildings erected thereon under the provisions of the 

statute relating to the sale of school property. 

Trusting that the above satisfadorily answers your inquiry, 

we remain 

Very truly yours 

ATTORNEY G-2NEWL OFF TEXAS 

w /s/~ester E. Ollison 

~Chester E. Ollis& 

Assistant 

APPROTJED JUN 20 1946 

/s/ CARLOS asmy 

FIRST ASSISTANT 

ATTOREEY GENE&U 

CEO:fb:agw 

AWRDVED 

Opinion t+mmittee 

By BWB 

Chairman