Sharon Borough v. Pennsylvania Co.

Citations

• 44 Pa. Super. 526
• 1910 Pa. Super. LEXIS 213

Syllabus

<p>Road law — Street—Public street — Evidence.</p> <p>1. A finding that a street was in fact a public street is sufficiently sustained by evidence which shows that it had so appeared on all the official maps and plans of the borough in which it was situated from the earliest times; that it was so designated in conveyances by property holders along its line; that it had been used continuously for fifty years as a street, and that public water plugs or fire hydrants had been located within its lines.</p> <p>Road law — Street—Obstruction of street — Boroughs.</p> <p>2. Where a street in a borough has been dedicated and accepted as a public street, it cannot subsequently be obstructed either by the borough itself, or by anyone acting with the consent of the borough. It may be vacated by proper legal proceedings but it cannot be obstructed.</p> <p>Road law — Boroughs—Railroads—Crossing streets — Laches.</p> <p>. 3. Section 12 of the general railroad Act of February 19, 1849, P. L. 79, relating to the crossing of public highways by railroads, is not restricted to rural highways, but applies to public streets in boroughs and cities.</p> <p>4. Where a railroad has constructed an embankment across a public street of a borough so as to obstruct the street, laches cannot be imputed either to the commonwealth, or to the officers of the borough in which the street is situated, in permitting the obstruction to continue for a long period of time.</p>