Moffett v. South Park Commissioners

Citations

• 138 Ill. 620
• 28 N.E. 975

Syllabus

<p>1. Dedication to the eubhic—irrevocable after acceptance. -Where the owner of land makes a dedication, as at common law, of a strip-thereof for a public highway, and the public accepts the same, neither he nor subsequent owners claiming under him can repudiate his acts, and regain possession of such strip of land.</p> <p>2. Same—how made. Whether or not a proprietor of land has made a dedication of the same, or of a part thereof, to the public, is always a question of fact. No particular form is required to the validity of the dedication, but it may be made in any way from which the intention of the dedicator can be evidenced.</p> <p>3. Same—proof of intention to dedicate. The proof must be clear of an actual intention to dedicate, or of such acts and declarations as should equitably estop the owner from denying such intention. He must do some act, or suffer some act to be done, from which it can be fairly inferred he intended a dedication to the public. Such intention may be proved by the conduct and declarations of the party, and any act of his satisfactorily showing an intention to dedicate is sufficient.</p> <p>4. In arriving at a conclusion as to whether an act was done by a land owner with the intent to dedicate his land to the public use, the location of the property and all its surroundings must be considered. Thus, the intention to dedicate will be more readily presumed in regard to urban than country property, and in regard to well settled or frequented country than in regard to wild, wood, waste or unfrequented land.</p> <p>5. In this case the facts and circumstances are stated, from which the court holds that the owner of land, by his acts and conduct, made a dedication of a strip of land to the public for a highway, and that the same was accepted by the public and those in charge of the highways and streets.</p> <p>6. Evtdenoe—of witness fourteen years of age — admissibility and -weight. The testimony of a witness as to the location of a fence, based