This may have been the difference between owning a slave and paying 
taxes on the slave. It was common practice to "rent" slaves to others 
who would then pay the taxes. I suppose one might compare the number of 
taxable slaves (over the age of 16) to the number of slaves over 16 in 
the county.

During the colonial period there were heavy fines for failure to pay 
taxes, split between the informer and county. This may have still been 
the case during the national period.

Paul

On 11/9/2021 9:09 AM, Jordan, Ervin L (elj7t) wrote:
> Good morning, Dr. Leveen:
>
>
>
> I believe owners wanted to pay as little as possible in taxes on their slaves. Perhaps this source may have further relevant insights: Leslie Anderson Morales, ed., Virginia Slave Births Index, 1853-1865, 5 vols. (Westminster, Maryland: Heritage Books, 2007).
>
> Prof. Ervin L. Jordan Jr. (Associate Professor)
> Research Archivist, Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
> University of Virginia
> University office phone currently unavailable (teleworking from home)
> President’s Commission on the University in the Age of Segregation
> Affiliated faculty, John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History,
>        University of Virginia College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences
> Advisory Board of the National Civil War Chaplains’ Research Center and
>         Museum
> Board of Directors, The Charlottesville Center for Culture and History:
>        Home of the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society
> Gettysburg Foundation Board of Directors
> Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation Board of Trustees (Commonwealth of Virginia)
> Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia entry “Ervin L. Jordan, Jr.”
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ervin_L._Jordan_Jr.
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Leveen, Lois
> Sent: Monday, November 8, 2021 1:19 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Tracking enslavement through Census versus Property Tax records
>
>
>
> Howdy,
>
> This is a very nitty gritty question for folks who have worked on documents regarding enslavement, specifically regarding the number of enslaved people held as property by particular enslavers.
>
>
>
> I'm discovering some pretty significant discrepancies between the number of enslaved people listed in the 1850 and 1860 slave schedules, and the number listed in the State Auditor Property Tax records.  With the latter, I am able to see reported numbers of enslaved people for a particular enslaver year by year, not just decade by decade.  But the numbers are WAYYYY off.
>
> For example, somebody listed with over 20 enslaved people on the slave schedule has only 4 or 5 enslaved in the property tax listing for roughly the same time period.  I keep seeing this, over and over.
>
>
>
> I suspect someone who has more experience/knowledge working with these types of records might be able to explain the discrepancies.  If that's you, please school me -- I am all ears (or eyeballs, as I"ll be reading your answer).
>
>
>
> Thanks so much,
>
> Lois
>
>
>
> Lois Leveen, Ph.D.
>
> she/her/hers
>
> Virginia Humanities Fellow
>
> Library of Virginia
>
> 800 East Broad Street
>
> Richmond, VA 23219
>
>
>
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