The River That Cost Twice
A landowner is forced to pay for the same property twice after the Columbia River shifts its channel and alters the state boundary.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Mr. J. G. Elliott and his son were in town Saturday. Mr. Elliott is making arrangements for the second purchase of tide lands on Miller's Sands. Some years ago, when the main channel of the river ran between these sands and the Washington shore, the sands were claimed by the state of Oregon. Mr. Elliott purchased the piece of property he is now after from Oregon and holds a title from that state. But the Columbia shifted its channel, and today these particular sands are claimed by the state of Washington. He will be obliged to pay over again for property he believes himself justly entitled to.
“He will be obliged to pay over again for property he believes himself justly entitled to.”
This story highlights the volatile nature of river-based property lines in the Pacific Northwest. Today, such legal disputes involving the shifting course of rivers like the Columbia are still adjudicated, often involving complex federal and state jurisdictional battles.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.