Interesting. Sounds like right of way access would have played into it a great deal.
When I was trimming trees for the power company, the only time we heard the word 'easement' was when the power lines went through an easement to provide residential power. It was a real pain dragging that brush out of there.
I got those calls too. I told neighbors that if they could agree on the property line, to build a common back fence, and eliminate the no man's land between them.