Pittsburgh v. Pittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad

Citations

• 263 Pa. 294
• 106 A. 724
• 1919 Pa. LEXIS 420

Syllabus

<p>Highways — ■ Equity — ■Jurisdiction — Parties — Removal of ohstructions from public highway — Dedication—Streets—Partition— Road law — Statute of limitations — Payment of taxes — Acts of April 10,1819, P. L. 581, and May 9,1889, P. L. 178.</p> <p>1. Equity has jurisdiction of a bill for the removal of obstructions from a public street where the question of invasion of public rights depends upon matters of law, like the construction of documentary evidence, or where the evidence is such that the plaintiff would be entitled to binding instructions in an action at law.</p> <p>2. A number of property owners alleged to have buildings encroaching upon a public street may be joined as parties defendant in a suit for the removal of such encroachments, where there are general features common to all and no party is prejudiced thereby; although there may be special features as to some defendants.</p> <p>3. The question of multifariousness is one of convenience and rests largely in the discretion of the court.</p> <p>4. Partition proceedings designating and locating a street as a public street constitute a dedication of such street to the public, especially where followed by many conveyances made with reference thereto.</p> <p>5. The acts of a city in making reference to a street in numerous ordinances, establishing the grade for it, dumping earth upon it, building and repairing wharves within its lines and granting franchises to railroad companies to construct and operate tracks on it, constitute an acceptance of the dedication of such street.</p> <p>6. The long existence of encroachments upon a public street and inaction by municipal authorities constitute no defense to a suit by a city for the removal of such encroachments, since the statute of limitations does not run against the public and laches will not be imputed to the municipality in such a case.</p> <p>7. The Act of May 9, 1889, P. L. 173, relating to pnused streets, has no retroactive effect and does not apply to