The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1902-10-02
LONG LITIGATION ENDED.
Title to Sullivan County Coal Tract Settled
After Legal Contest Lasting Nearly
Quarter OF Century.

final struggle took place on Mon.
day Sept. az, at Laporte before
Judge Hart of Williamsport,
specially presiding.
In September 1880, B. Rush
Jackson who claimed to own third
interest in this land, sold it to his
sister, Emily l.. Patrick of Towan-
da, for one thousand dollars, what
would have been a very small price
but for the fact that B. R. Jackson
had no paper title, the estate OF
Geo. d. Jackson his brother, claim
ing to own the whole tract. This
dispute was settled by a bill in
equity in Bradford county, filed in
1881, and ended in 1887 by de-
cree OF the supreme Court ordering
the executors of Geo. d. Jackson
to make deeds for a one third in
terest to the estate of Josiah Jack
son his father, and one third to
Emily l.. Patrick, assignee of B.
r. Jackson, it beiug found by the
equity proceedings that Geo. D.
Jackson held it in trust, and was
the owner himself of the other third
only.
On the same day that B. r. Jack
son sold to Mrs. Patrick, summons
was issued by the First National
Bank of Towanda against B. r.
Jackron as surviving partner of
Jackson Bros, and a short time
afterwards Judgment was entered
in Sullivan county by H. Gravely
against the same parties. This lat
ter judgment was purchased by
Bernice w. Jackson, widow of Geo.
d. Jackson who at one time repre-
sented this district in the state
senate, and upon it all execution
was issued, the one third interest
OF B. R. Jackson which he had
previously sold to his sister was
levied upon, and sold at sheriff S
sale, Mrs. Jackson buying it for
$50 90. So that this one third in
terest of B. r. Jackson was claimed
by two parties, one being his sister
who bought it Of him for a valuable
consideration; the other being a
subsequent purchaser at sheriff S
sale, who claimed that Jackson was
insolvent at the time, and that the
transfer to his sister was null and
void, it having been done to de-
fraud creditors. And upon this
situation there has been twenty one
years of litigation, the details of
which would be dry reading. A
bill in equity was filed in Sullivan
county in 1881 in which the title to
the land was incidentally raised,
and this was decided in favor of
Mrs. Patrick in 1895 after sixteen
years of litigation.
But the Jackson claimants were
not yet satisfied, and still insisted
on being recognized as owners, so
that in order to secure tenant who
would work the mines which had
been idle since 1886, lease had to
be drawn appointing a trustee to
whom all royalties could be paid
until the true ownership was ascer-
tanned. After using every effort to
compel the Jackson claimants to
bring suit in ejectment, w. L.
Woodruff, son of Emily L. Patrick
did so, against the executors of
Bernice w. Jackson, and this is the
case that was tried at Laporte last
week, resulting in an agreement
that Judgment should be entered
for the plaintiff with the same
effect as though there had been two
verdicts in ejectment, thus giving
the claimant under Emily L. Pat
rick a clear title to the one third.
The royalties in the hands of the
trustee amounted to nearly SI3, 900.
And there is large amount oi
coal yet to be mined
The counsel concerned in the
case for the plaintiff were Grant
Herring, Geo. E. Elwell of Blooms
burg, E. ]. Mullen of Laporte and
R. ]. Thompson of Dushore. o.
these Mr.. Elwell had been connect
ed with the case since 1880. Judge
Elwell was counsel up to the time
of his death in 1895. For the de
fendant were R. A. Mercur of To
wanda, Seth Mccormick and Addi
son Candor Of Williamsport, anC
+ A. Walsh of Dushore. Mr.. Mercu
is the only living counsel who wa
connected from the beginning il
1881.
More than twelve people win
have been connected with the case
have died since the litigation began
! including all the original parties
: two judges, master in chancer
and number Of attorneys. TIL
case in different forms has bee
: three times in the Supreme Court