Using Tax Records for Genealogy

Photo by The New York Public Library on Unsplash

Once you have researched land records, it seems like a natural step to look at tax records. Let’s look at some options.

I have used tax records in the past, especially as it relates to land. The majority of my ancestors are farmers so taxes were assessed based on their land holdings. As more records are available online, you might find records that pertain to your family. Most of my finds were at local historical societies, courthouses, and local archives. You also may find sites like FamilySearch and Ancestry that will have tax records. This is an excellent blog article regarding tax records and what they can tell us. Tax Records Could Offer Rich Details About Your Ancestors
Why do we care about tax records? We might already know where an ancestor lives. I like to look at them for a couple of reasons. Often, they verify that our ancestors are living in a location in between census records. By comparing their taxes with neighbors, you can deduce how well your ancestor is doing. Lastly, if your person is no longer on the tax roll, it is a clue that something has happened: moving, death, or sale of land. Sometimes we learn just as much from what isn’t there.
Canada, Ontario tax assessment rolls : COLLECTION RECORD, 1834-1899
FamilySearch Catalog: Canada, Ontario tax assessment rolls : COLLECTION RECORD, 1834-1899

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-F3CJ-671X?view=index&personArk=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3A6612-7S71&action=view&cc=4130007&lang=en&groupId=

When doing a search, I was surprised to see in the summary that my ancestor’s birth year (varied from 1819-1826. Of course, this is my ancestor whose birth year varied across the census records too! In addition to his birth, the land description, the number of acres and additional statistics are included.
Two bachelor relatives have few records but by searching for tax records in the historical society of Roseau County, Minnesota,  I was able to find tax records related to their farmland. While this one doesn’t provide age information, it does provide the land location, acres, and value.

Source: https://roseauhistoric.wpengine.com/

​My third example is from the Wisconsin Historical Society. They honored my request for copies of the tax records for relatives living in Calumet County, Wisconsin. In this case, I’ve provided a summary of the record.

https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/

If you look across the years at the tax records, it is possible to see if your people were improving their lot. Is their land valued more than it was ten years ago? Have they acquired more land? There are tax records beyond the United States and Canada. All these items help us to understand their story. I hope you have fun exploring the tax records for your own ancestors. Happy researching!