AGE REVIEW AND OWNERSHIP STATUS OF MORRIS ISLAND, FLATHEAD RIVER, MT 



Sections 22 and 27, T28N, R21W, M.P.M. 

 Flathead County, Montana 



by 



Teresa Kinley, Hydrogeologist 



Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation 



Trust Land Management Division 



February 27, 19 97 



INTRODUCTION 



Mr. Arnold B. Morris submitted a letter dated February 1, 1996 to Bill Wright, 

 DNRC-NWLO requesting that the state provide him with a letter "stating if they 

 are claiming ownership or any interest in either of the properties" in several 

 sections in T28N, R21W in northwestern Montana (Figure 1) for which he 

 provided copies of deeds. Part of these sections are crossed by the main stem 

 of the Flathead River. He was particularly interested in the "island 

 property" acquired from "Naimy's" in 1975 because he wanted to sell it. 

 Morris Island comprises much of this "Naimy's" property. Montana Department 

 of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks is interested in purchasing the portion of Morris 

 Island owned by Mr. Arnold Morris and possibly exchanging for the portion 

 claimed by Flathead National Forest. Study of this area has been undertaken • 

 due to this request and interest by Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and 

 Parks, and Flathead National Forest. 



GENERAL BACKGROUND OF STATE OWNERSHIP 



Based on an 1844 U.S. Supreme Court decision (Pollard vs. Hagen 44 U.S. 212) 

 the original 13 states held ownership of navigable riverbeds consistent with 

 English law. The Supreme Court held that all new states would enter the Union 

 under equal footing. Therefore, all of the states would own the lands beneath 

 navigable rivers and lakes . 



70-1-202, MCA confirms state ownership by declaring the state to be the owner 

 of "all land below the water of a navigable lake or stream." 70-16-201, MCA 

 clarifies that the state's ownership is only to the "...edge of the lake or 

 stream at low-water mark." 70-18-203, MCA further provides that islands and 

 accumulations of land formed in the beds of navigable streams belong to the 

 state if there is no title or prescription to the contrary; i.e. an island 

 existing prior to statehood that was surveyed and claimed by the United States 

 government would not be state- owned. 



77-1-102, MCA provides that abandoned beds of navigable streams or lakes lying 

 within the meandered lines of the United States survey and all islands 

 existing in the navigable stream or lake which have not been surveyed by the 

 United States government, including lands which at any time in the past 

 comprised such an island or part thereof, except lands owned by adjacent 

 landowners as accretions, belong to the State of Montana to be held in trust 

 for the benefit of the public schools of the state. 



An island may form up out of the bed of the river, and then later attach to 

 shore. The state retains ownership of these islands, even though they are no 

 longer surrounded by water. A key criteria is that the sandbar stabilize as 

 an island before attaching to shore. Sandbars that attach to shore before 

 stabilization would be owned by the adjacent land owner as an accretion to 

 their land. A recent Montana court decision looked to the establishment of 

 vegetation in determining that a sandbar had grown and stabilized and 

 therefore become an island. 



