Dale Henderson Logging, Inc. v. Department of Transportation

[¶ 1] In these consolidated cases, Dale Henderson is the principal owner of Dale Henderson Logging, Inc. (DHL), and Oak Leaf Realty, Inc. (OLR). DHL owns property in Washington County, and OLR owns several thousand acres in Hancock County. The DHL and OLR properties have a four-rod-wide rail corridor running over them that was once owned by the Maine Central Railroad Company and later conveyed to the State of Maine, which the Department of Transportation (DOT) claims to own in fee simple absolute by virtue of deeds given to Maine Central’s predecessor in title from 1897 to 1898. DHL and OLR…