ISLAND. A piece of land surrounded by water.
When new islands arise in the open sea, they belong to the first occupant ; but when they are newly formed so near the shore as to be within the boundary of some state, they belong to that state.
Islands which arise in rivers when in the middle of the stream belong in equal parts to the riparian proprietors. When they arise mostly on one side, they belong to the ripa rian owners up to the middle of the stream.
The owner in fee of the bed of a river or other submerged land is the owner of any bar, island, or dry land which may be sub sequently formed thereon ; St. Louis v. Rutz, 138 U. S. 226, 11 Sup. Ct. 337, 34 L. Ed. 941.
Where an island springs up in a navigable river, and by accretion to the shores of the island and the mainland, they are united, the owner of the mdinland is not entitled to the island, but only to such accretion as formed on his land ; Cooley v. Golden, 117 Mo. 33, 23 S. W. 100, 21 L. R. A. 300.
If an island springs up in a navigable stream it belongs to the sovereign, and not to the owner of the land on either of the banks of the stream ; Glassell v. Hansen, 135 Cal. 547, 67 Pac. 964 ; if there be an accre tion to plaintiff's land which gradually ex tends to the island,' the owner of the land would acquire the island with the accre tions ; id. A mussel bed over which the wa
ter flows at every tide is not an island, but should be denominated flats; King v. Young, 76 Me. 76, 49 Am. Rep. 596. In many states lands totally or partially submerged are made the subject of grant by the sovereign in order that they may be reclaimed for use ful purposes.
An island that arises in the bed of a stream usually first presents itself as a sand bar; Cox v. Arnold; 129 Mo. 337, 31 S. W. 592, 50 Am. St. Rep. 450 ; Glassell v. Han sen, 135 Cal. 547, 67 Pac. 964 ; Holman v. Hodges, 112 Ia. 714, 84 N. W. 950, 58 L. R. A. 673, 84 Am. St. Rep. 367; a bar, before it will support vegetation of any kind, may be come valuable for fishing, hunting, as a shoot ing park, for the harvest of ice, for pumping sand, etc. If further deposits of alluvion up on it would make it more valuable, the law of accretion should still apply ; Fowler v. Wood, 73 Jan. 511, 85 Pac. 763, 6 L. R. A. (N. S.) 162, 117, Am. St. Rep. 534.
See ACCESSION; ACCRETION; BOUNDARY.