AREAS WITHOUT OWNERS

Hawera Star, Volume XLIX, 16 November 1929, Page 11

AREAS WITHOUT OWNERS

A VALUABLE Thames-side plot of land at Molesley is needed by the Surrey County Council, who have been advertising in the “London Gazette” for the owner whose identity is unknown. The land is wanted under the Thames Bridges Act and unless the owner substantiated his claim by September 4, it was intended to take steps to vest the land in themselves by deed poll. Inquiries in official quarters show that in all parts of England there is land—some of it valuable land—for which no owners can be found. The new system of land registration has brought to light innumerable instances of land owners who have only what is called a possessory title—that is to say, their ownership depends on the fact that they have held undisputed possession of their land for more than a certain period, although they hold no title deeds to show how they became the owners.

Band registration is at present compulsory only within the County of Middlesex and London and the boroughs of Hastings and Eastbourne. It may be applied in Brighton before long, but before it becomes compulsory the approval of - the local municipal authorities must be expressed. Already instances have come to light where owners of freehold property have died without leaving any known relatives and their agents, instead of advising the Crown, have continued to collect the rents, granted fresh leases and eventually disposed of what they are pleased to term their “possessory” title. This has happened again and again in the older parts of Battersea, Lambeth, Shoreditch, Southwark, Camberwell, Bethnal Green and Hackney. Epping Forest is a classic instance of land-grabbing that was rampart in the last century. Owners of local villas wore in the habit of advancing their fences until modest back gardens became miniature parks. The City Corporation at last took steps to prevent

WILES OF THE “GRABBERS”

this, but much of the stolen land was never recovered. Buyers of freehold building plots in a large number of instances never fulfil their intention of erecting a residence thereon. The land lies derelict, the owner either forgets all about it or so entirely loses interest in it that .he no longer amuses himself on Sundays by journeying to gaze at it. As the surrounding land is developed it becomes impossible to identify individual plots without incurring the expense of a re-survey and so the nn-built-on plot is gradually annexed, first as an allotment and finally as a building site. Instances of this are frequent in the land development of the Thames estuary and the expanse 'of coastline between Brighton and Eastbourne.

Large tracts of open grassland were enclosed by barbed wire during the 1 war as training grounds for troops and I for camps and aerodromes. When the war was over the troops departed from I these centres but the bai’bed wire still encloses the land they occupied, and what was open to the public in pre-war days is now shut in, and already warn- ' ■ing notices to trespassers ” adorn i these enclosures. Land-grabbing in and around London and other great cities became a fine art during the Jacobean period, when the Civil War disturbances wore followed by the 'Great Plague, which decimated the population and caused many land-owners to flee Jrom danger only to die among strangers, leaving their property at the mercy of any who cared to seize it. The Great Eire of London also aided the enterprising land-grabber. It, was the beginning of a calling, that has flourished ever since. All this it is expected will end when land registration is made compulsory throughout the country and the only valid proof of land ownership will be the “absolute” title granted and guaranteed by the certificate of the Land Registry.