Almost Everything You Wanted to Know About Tithables
(in Virginia & North Carolina)
Tithables lists can be extremely valuable to genealogists. We all know,
in a general way, that males 16 or over were taxed, but fine distinctions in
the laws and the process for creating the lists are important to
understand because they can yield valuable clues for genealogists. Since neither
land nor personal property was generally taxed in the colonies, tithables are
the only useful colonial-era tax records available to us._[1]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn1)
Tithables were annual “head” taxes levied on residents. In Virginia, the
tax was levied in three parts: to the colony, the county, and the parish.
The majority of the tax, in approximately equal amounts, was collected to
defray the expenses of each county and parish. The amount of the tax was
set annually, and independently, by each county and parish. Although the
amount varied by location and year, it was relatively small burden on
individuals, amounting to roughly 2 to 4% of the annual production of an average
field worker._[2]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn2) Since
parish and county boundaries were not usually identical, each jurisdiction
normally kept its own list of taxables.
In order to understand exactly what we can learn from tithables lists it
is necessary to understand how the laws regarding tithables changed over
time.
History of Virginia Tithables 1624-1704
Among the very first acts of the General Assembly was the imposition in
March 1623/4 of a tax of ten pounds of tobacco levied “upon every male head
above sixteen years of adge [sic] now living”._[3]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn3)
This terse language was apparently sufficient for several years. For
example, acts setting the amount of tax in 1629, 1632, and 1639 imposed the tax
“per poll” without further defining exactly what constituted a poll._[4]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn4) (The term “tithable”
does not appear in the statutes until 1643.) It was apparently understood
that the tax applied only to freemen. As the population grew with the
addition of indentured servants, slaves, working women, and non-citizens, it
eventually became necessary to more clearly define who was to be taxed. At
the same time, counties and parishes were established, with a need for both
revenue and a collection process, necessitating a more complete definition
of the taxing process itself. The language of subsequent acts suggests
that these factors, combined with the concealment of tithables, became
significant impediments to tax collection. The following series of legislative
acts addressed these issues:
1643 An act establishing a tax for the support of the parishes
defined tithables as “all youths of sixteen years of age as upwards, as also for
all negro women at the age of sixteen years”. Whether some now lost act
had added negro women to the colony or county tax rolls is unknown._[5]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn5)
1645 Virginia briefly instituted a tax on both persons and on
livestock, repealing the tax on livestock in 1648.
1648 Beginning with the tithables of 1649, all male servants
imported into the colony were to be taxed, regardless of age. Free men, either
imported or Virginia-born, continued to be taxed upon reaching the age of
16._[6]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn6)
1658 Tithables were defined as “all male servants hereafter imported
into this collony of what age soever they be, shall bee brought into the
lists and shall be liable to pay countrey levies; and all negroes imported
whether male or female, and Indian servants male or female however procured,
being sixteen years of age, to be listed and pay leavies as aforesaid;
such christians onelie to be excepted as are natives of this countrey, or such
as are exempted from levies being vnder the age of sixteen years.” That
is, tithables included all imported male servants of any age, all imported
negroes and Indian servants, male or female, 16 or older, and all free
males 16 or older. Masters of households were required to return a list of
tithables to the county court during the month of June each year. _[7]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn7) [This act was restated for
clarity in 1662.] _[8]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn8)
1661 Each county was ordered to establish four precincts, each with
a tax commissioner. Masters of households were to deliver to their
respective commissioner a list of their tithables during the month of June._[9]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn9)
1662 Another act removed a loophole. Planters had been importing
female servants to work in the fields to avoid paying the tax on males. The
General Assembly this year made taxable all women servants who were
employed at “working in the crop”._[10]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn10)
1663 One of the early attempts to define the collection process was
enacted this year. Masters of households were required to return to their
precinct commissioner a list of the names of the tithables for whom they
were responsible by 10 June each year. Ages of tithables were determined as
of 9 June. A severe penalty was imposed for concealing tithables – anyone
found to have concealed a tithable would forfeit either a servant or 1,000
lbs of tobacco to the informing party. Tithable women servants were
exempted from the penalty._[11]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn11)
[Beginning in 1673, the list of tithables was required to be posted at
the church, to encourage informers.]
1672 All native-born Negro women 16 and older were made tithable,
whether free or not._[12]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn12)
The same act required masters to register the births of negro and mulatto
children with the parish, to facilitate determining the age of future
tithables.
1680 The prior acts were amended to alter the age at which children
were made taxable. Imported male servants were made taxable at the age of
14, and negro children were made taxable at the age of 12. _[13]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn13) [Note that from 1681 through
1705, imported white servants born outside the colony were thus taxable at 14
rather than at 16.]
1682 Indian servant women were made taxable at any age._[14]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn14)
Few tithables lists exist for the 17th century – Surry County being a
notable exception – so in most cases, we need not deal with these constant
changes and can skip directly to the 1705 act.
The 1705 Act
The act of October 1705 effectively replaced all prior statutes and
redefined tithables in a way that would remain basically unchanged until the
Revolution ended the capitation tax system. _[15]_
(http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn15) It declared that:
“…all male persons, of the age of sixteen years, and upwards, and all
negro, mulatto, and Indian women, of the age of sixteen years, and upwards,
not being free, shall be, and are hereby declared to be tithable, or
chargeable, for defraying the public, county, and parish charges.”
Thus, after 1705, tithables were all males 16 and older, and all non-white
servant women over 16. In 1723, an act clarified that free negroes,
mulattos, and Indians (except tributary Indians) and their wives were taxable at
the age of 16._[16]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn16) As
before, the age of tithables was determined as of 9 June.
The 1705 act required that each county be subdivided into convenient
precincts, with a justice or commissioner assigned to take tithables for each
precinct. Masters or mistresses of households were to return to the justice
a list of all tithables in their households, and concealment of tithables
was subject to a significant fine – imposed on both the concealing party and
on the justice of his precinct. The date on which tithables were due
remained at 10 June, with the age of tithables determined as of 9 June.
However, tithables could be delivered to the justices until the end of June
without penalty.
In 1748, the Virginia legislature replaced and consolidated many of its
prior statutes. Among the statutes restated was a new tithables act, with
some relatively minor clarification: "all male persons of the age of sixteen
years and upwards, and all negroe, mulatto, and Indian women of the same
age, except Indians tributary to this government and all wives of free
negroes, mulattoes, and Indians...”. Certain persons, including county sheriffs
and the staff of the College of William and Mary, were exempted.
How were the tithables lists compiled?
The process was not fundamentally changed after the 1661 and 1662
statutes. Beginning in 1662, each county created precincts for tax purposes –
though they were often vaguely defined and their boundaries subject to annual
changes. A commissioner, usually a justice, was assigned to each precinct
to actually created the tax list. Residents were required to deliver a list
of the taxable persons within their households to one of those justices.
It’s important to understand that the commissioner did not go door-to-door,
as in later censuses, rather the taxables were self-reported. It follows
that the sequence of names on a tithables list are not significant, since at
best they reflect only the sequence in which the names were reported.
[They were frequently copied into an alphabetical list for recording.] To
assure accuracy, the penalty for omitting or concealing a tithable was quite
severe, and copies of the lists were publicly posted to encourage
corrections and informants.
The 1705 act contains a reasonable description of the process which had
already been in use for several decades: “…every master or mistress of a
family, or in his or her absence, or non-residence at the plantation, his or
her attorney, or overseer, shall, on the said tenth day of June, by a list
under his or her hand, deliver, or cause to be delivered, to the justice
appointed to take the same, the names and number of all the tithable persons
abiding in, or belonging to, his or her family”.
Lest this language be misinterpreted, it’s important to note that the
purpose of compiling the lists in the first place was to identify the persons
responsible for the tax and the amount they owed, so that the sheriff could
later collect the tax. Thus the first name in a “household” was the
person from whom the tax was to be collected. The names or numbers of tithables
in the “household” represented the amount of the tax owed (the specific
levy usually not being determined until later.) Thus, the “household” was
not a physical one, but rather a taxable one.
It was not, strictly speaking, required that persons report their
tithables to the justice or commissioner for their home precinct. If convenient,
they could report to another justice. Whether or not their name ended up on
the correct precinct’s list is undeterminable. As a result, we may find
persons occasionally listed in a different precinct, giving the possibly
erroneous impression that they had relocated within the county. However,
recall that the precinct’s justice had a significant incentive to assure that
his precinct was correctly enumerated, and was therefore motivated to
include the name on his own list. This probably explains the occasional
duplicate listing.
Finally, it’s important to understand the source of the list. The lists
that still exist may be county lists or parish lists, or both. They may or
may not include corrections and exemptions. They may be originals, copies,
or the corrected and aggregated lists entered into the record by the
county or vestry clerk. The origin of the list therefore determines its likely
accuracy. In addition, we should keep in mind that spelling and penmanship
varied considerably, and a justice’s list and a clerk’s list may very
well spell the same name differently.
Implied information on tithable lists
* Keep in mind that tithables lists do not enumerate physical
households in the sense of later censuses. They merely enumerate each person
responsible for paying the tax along with the number of “heads” for whom they
were the responsible taxpayer. Two individuals living in the same house,
each an individual taxpayer, would probably be listed independently.
* When there are multiple names, the first name is that of the “
master or mistress of a family” (the person responsible for the tax), followed
by the names or number of the taxable members of the household for whom
that person would pay the tax. In the 18th century this was males over 16
(children, overseers, apprentices, servants, and slaves), and non-white,
enslaved or indentured women over sixteen. A free male 21 or over in the
household was legally responsible for his own tax, and thus should be listed
separately - although we can’t be certain that this was always the case. As
early as 1644, “master of a household” was defined as meaning the person in “
command” of the farm or plantation.
* When a male appears as an independent tithable, it is reasonable
to assume that they were of age. A separate appearance on the tax list
indicates tax responsibility, which was assumed only upon reaching majority.
This does not indicate that the person was maintaining a separate physical
household. In the case of males between 16 and 21, their parents,
guardians, or masters (in the case of apprentices or servants) were responsible for
the tax.
* The age of persons on the list was calculated as of 9 June of the
same year. This can be a very valuable genealogical clue, since the first
appearance as a tithable implies the last date on which the person could
have turned 16. In the case of disputes over age, the county or vestry
courts adjudicated.
* Apprentices typically were taxed as members of their master’s
household, that being a typical provision of an apprentice’s indenture.
* Although free white women were never tithables themselves, a widow
or spinster can appear on a tithables list as head of a household if they
were responsible for taxes on male children, servants, or slaves.
* The sequence in which names appear on a list is not significant,
for the list was self-reported by the taxed persons themselves, rather than
by a door-to-door assessment such as was done for later censuses. That is,
we can’t draw any conclusions about neighbors from the tithables lists.
The precinct in which names appear only identifies the general geography in
which they lived.
* It is reasonably safe to infer that male children appearing in a
household, regardless of age, are unmarried, for they would otherwise be
responsible for their own tax as “master of a family”.
* Religion was not a factor – all persons were responsible for the
support of the parish regardless of their own religious affiliation. Nor
was nationality a factor.
Who was exempt?
The 1662 act made certain colonial officials exempt from paying the parish
portion of the tax, and exempted Anglican ministers from paying the public
portion. In 1643, poor persons who were unable to work due to infirmity
or age were relieved of the county tax, though it was left up to the
individual county courts to determine who would be exempted. It is probably safe
to assume that these exemptions were made only to those unable to work.
The parishes seldom exempted such persons, for the parish made provisions for
supporting them where necessary.
The act of October 1705 provided for local discretion, exempting “such
only, as the county court, and vestry, for reasons, in charity, made appear to
them, shall think fit to excuse”. This permitted the county courts to
exempt whomever it wished from the public tax, and allowed the vestry to
independently exempt persons from the parish tax. It is likely that exemptions
were mainly for the aged and infirm who were unable to support themselves.
The act of 1748 contained nearly identical language, exempting "such only
as the county court, for charitable reasons appearing to them, shall think
fit to excuse." Exempt persons were normally included in the lists, but
noted as exempt or as taxable “to the parish”. If a person was exempt, you
may find a court or vestry record of that exemption. The county courts
also sometimes exempted county and parish officeholders, and the 1748 act for
malized that to exempt ministers, constables, and other officials.
Note that the substantial fine imposed for concealment of tithables
encouraged even exempt persons to be sure they were listed.
Value of Court Records
You should carefully check court records for information related to
tithables. The local county and vestry courts adjudicated ages of tithables,
processed appeals, handled jurisdictional disputes, processed exemptions, and
determined the ages of slaves, orphans, and servants. Court records thus
often contain supplementary information that you’ll find helpful. In
addition, the court records defining the precincts and appointing their
list-takers usually describe the general bounds of each tax precinct. Finally,
court records also frequently contain mention of persons added to, or deleted
from, the tithables lists subsequent to their recording.
After the lists were recorded and the number of taxables identified, the
courts determined the amount to be levied. In Virginia, the Sheriff was
responsible for actually collecting the tax (and was paid a handsome
percentage of the amount collected). The collection process normally uncovered
additional taxables or generated the appeals found in the court records.
The Switch to Poll and Property Taxes
When the colonies became independent, the tax system changed
significantly. In Virginia and North Carolina, after a brief experimental period, it
shifted to taxing mainly males over 16 and to taxes on personal property and
land.
For example, Virginia enacted several statutes to change the capitation
tax system beginning in 1777. One focus of these acts, illustrated by the
act of 1780, was to tax "every free male person, above the age of twenty-one
years, who shall be a citizen of this commonwealth, and also upon all
slaves, to be paid by the owners thereof, except such free persons and slaves as
shall be exempted on application to the respective county courts through
age or infirmity." _[17]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn17)
The act of 1783 clarified that "nothing in said act contained, shall be
construed to prevent the several county courts from causing lists to be taken
of all free male tithables, between the ages of sixteen and twenty-one
years, and of imposing taxes upon all such for the purpose of county or parish
levies." _[18]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftn18) The act
of 1786 completed the switch. The majority of capitation tax lists from
1779 through 1787 taxed 21-year olds, but nothing prevented the individual
counties from taxing males at 16, and some did so. [You should carefully
check the applicable laws and county court records to interpret tithables
lists made during and after this period.]
North Carolina Tithables
Unfortunately, nearly all the North Carolina General Assembly’s acts prior
to 1715 are lost, but then so are all but a few of the very early tax
lists. It appears, though, that the compilation and composition of tithables
lists closely paralleled Virginia’s. North Carolina’s acts of 1715 and
1738 defined tithables in much the same way as Virginia’s act of 1705, with a
few relatively minor exceptions. One of these differences was that the
effective date for determining ages of taxables was January 1 in North
Carolina. North Carolina also taxed mixed-bloods slightly differently. The
language used in the 1738 act was crystal clear:
…every white Person Male of the age of Sixteen Years and upwards all
Negroes Mulattoes Mustees Male or female and all Persons of Mixt Blood to the
fourth Generation Male and Female of the age of twelve years and upwards, and
no other Persons whatsoever, shall be deem'd Tithables.
An act of 1749 repeated this definition, which did not change until 1777,
when the new State experimented with several tax schemes, including the
introduction of a property tax, finally settling in 1784 on taxing free and
indentured males over 21, and slaves of both genders aged 12 to 50.
Age-related exemptions were left up to the counties until 1801, when the state
established a ceiling of age 50 for both free men and slaves.
____________________________________
_[1]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref1) There were
occasional taxes on land or other property levied at the county level. For
example, North Carolina briefly levied a tax on property from 1715 to 1722.
Virginia levied a tax on livestock from 1646 to 1648.
_[2]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref2) Although the
tithables lists themselves are lost for most counties and years, the surviving
court records generally contain annual records of the amount of the tax
(per tithable) as well as of the total amount collected.
_[3]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref3) The Statutes at
Large: Being a Collection of All the Laws of Virginia, from the First
Session of the Legislature…, William Waller Hening, ed., Vol. I, p128.
_[4]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref4) Hening., Vol. I,
p143, p196, p229.
_[5]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref5) Hening., Vol. I,
p242.
_[6]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref6) Hening, Vol. I,
p361-2.
_[7]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref7) Hening, Vol. I,
p454-5.
_[8]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref8) Hening, Vol. II,
p84.
_[9]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref9) Hening, Vol.
II., p19
_[10]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref10) Hening, Vol.
II, p170.
_[11]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref11) Hening, Vol.
II, p187
_[12]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref12) Hening, Vol.
II, p296.
_[13]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref13) Hening, Vol.
II, p479-80.
_[14]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref14) Hening, Vol.
II. p492.
_[15]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref15) Hening, Vol.
III, p258-61.
_[16]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref16) Hening, Vol.
IV, p133.
_[17]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref17) Hening, Vol.
X, p501.
_[18]_ (http://genfiles.com/legal/Tithables.htm#_ftnref18) Hening, Vol.
XI, p196.
(http://genfiles.com/legal/tithables.htm)
In a message dated 6/6/2011 1:03:37 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
My understanding is that taxes were paid at age 21. There were exceptions
for Constables and other categories that didn't pay taxes. One clue to
the
age and to find the father that I always use is that the father paid taxes
for white tithables as of age 16. In a couple of counties, I checked each
year's personal property tax lists for the years' prior to when a person
first paid taxes to find their father. It worked for me in Brunswick and
King William Counties during the time frame from 1782 to about 1830 (I
didn't need to go more recently). Some years have other tax records that
are also helpful. The records for many counties are available from the
LDS
microfilm collection, including these two.
Jim Terry
-----Original Message-----
From: Carole D. Bryant
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2011 10:44 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [VA-ROOTS] age to pay taxes in 1817?
A receipt for taxes paid was found in a collection of "old papers" kept
all these years by the family.
Actually, I do not know the man's age with any certainty, but am trying to
nail it down. Seems like this might be a clue, IF I knew how old he would
HAVE TO BE to be charged for levies.
Carole
In a message dated 6/6/2011 11:39:26 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
How did you find out the amount of taxes they paid and do you think the
age
? would be for the 1700s?
Thanks,
Margie
-----Original Message-----
From: Carole D. Bryant
Sent: Sunday, June 05, 2011 3:22 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [VA-ROOTS] age to pay taxes in 1817?
This question can be combined with my earlier question.
If a young man paid Virginia Personal Property taxes in 1817 (county
levies
$.35; parish levies $.44), it would mean he was over what age?
Thank you very much.
Carole
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