McDonough Co. v. E.I. DuPont DeNemours & Co., Inc.

In 1960, a company conveyed several tracts of land on an island to an individual. The conveyance contained a reservation for all sand and gravel found between the low-water mark of the Ohio River and the top of the banks along the island’s shores. The conveyance contained a very specific definition of the low-water mark, defining it to mean the water’s lowest stage before the installation of locks and dams on the river. The conveyance did not contain a similarly specific definition of the banks; however, the banks of the island were higher than the high-water mark. The conveyance also noted that the reservation was made in exchange for a reduction in the sales price. Eventually, the right in the island tracts of land were conveyed to the E.I. duPont deNemours & Company, Inc. (duPont) (defendant), and the reservation of rights in sand and gravel was conveyed to C.J. McDonough Company (McDonough) (plaintiff). Eventually, a dispute regarding the extent of the parties’ rights to the sand and gravel on the island arose. The trial court concluded that McDonough (the reservation holder) had a right to the sand and gravel between the low-water mark and the high-water mark. The court also concluded that duPont had a right to the remaining sand and gravel, that is, sand and gravel beneath the island. McDonough appealed, claiming that its rights extended to the top of the bank and that all the gravel and sand beneath the island was not exclusively duPont’s.