Opinion ID: 864389
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: evidence of poe and warner’s claim

Text: ¶4. Tract 2, a plot of some 99.8 acres, is claimed by the Poe family and was conveyed in three parcels, which are identified herein as 2(a), 2(b), and 2(c). The asserted chains of title to Tract 2 are not complete, and no pre-1900 deeds to any of the parcels are found in the record, they having been supposedly consumed by the 1922 courthouse fire. Rather, the Poes rely on abstracts of title and other similar documents from the Secretary of State’s office and from the Calhoun County sheriff’s record of tax sales, together with an affidavit by Larry Winter, a Poe descendant. Winter’s affidavit claims that “the L.F. Poe Estate and its predecessors in title have been in continuous possession of the questioned land . . . since 1878,” making uses of it similar to those asserted by the Warners. Winter’s mother “continues to live on the property in a house originally constructed before her birth in 1917.” Winter also asserts that ad valorem taxes have been paid on the land since 1878.3 ¶5. Tract 3, totaling some 167.8 acres, was conveyed in parcels identified as parcels 3(a-e). As with the Poes’ claim to Tract 2, the Warners’ claim to Tract 3 is supported by abstracts of title for the late 19thcentury period which is of principal interest in this case, without any title deed in the record until 1938. The Tract 3 chains of title are likewise incomplete even in abstract. ¶6. The Warners cite the same documents as the Poes, plus an affidavit by defendant James Sidney Warner. Warner claims that 3(a) and 3(b) have “been in private possession and conveyed in fee simple since the 1870’s” and that the Warners have “been in continuous possession of” 3(a) since 1890, and “in 3 No tax receipts for either Tract 2 or Tract 3 appear in the record. 3 possession of” 3(b) and 3(e) since 1938. The affidavit is silent on 3(c) and 3(d).4 Warner states that his family had a house where they lived on the disputed land “for a considerable period of time” and that several of his siblings “were born and reared on the challenged property,” although he does not state when that was or whether anyone lives there now. Warner also attests that his family has long paid ad valorem taxes to the county on the disputed land (although no tax receipts can be found in the record) and that they have made various uses of it (cutting timber, leasing oil and gas rights, farming, making “improvements”). ¶7. The asserted chains of title are supported by Poe and Warner by way of photocopies of various documents, characterized in their motion for summary judgment as follows: Exhibit K “a compilation of conveyances from the records of the Chancery Court of Calhoun County, which was prepared by the clerk’s office in 1992.” Exhibit L “documents evidencing tax sales from the Office of the State Auditor.” Exhibit M “documents obtained from the Mississippi Secretary of State.” Exhibit N “documents obtained from the archives of the State of Mississippi.” None of these photocopies is notarized or accompanied by any affidavit attesting to its authenticity or origin, except for those in Exhibit M, which are certified by the Secretary of State’s office. ¶8. The final evidence presented by Poe and Warner is the affidavit of Larry Winter, an heir to the Poe estate. Winter’s affidavit claims that “the L.F. Poe Estate and its predecessors in title have been in continuous possession of the questioned land . . . since 1878,” making uses of it similar to those asserted by Warner. Winter’s mother “continues to live on the property in a house originally constructed before her birth in 1917.” Winter also asserts that ad valorem taxes have been paid on the land since 1878.