Taxes

Week 15 of the #52Ancestors Challenge - "Taxes"

​A database recently added to the Harvard University website was the "1771 Massachusetts Tax Inventory", which includes the information (in searchable form) about the taxable property of individuals living in 152 Massachusetts towns in 1771. Of interest to me is the inclusion of four (District of) Maine towns from York County, Kittery being one where some of my ancestors resided during that time (the other 3 towns were Berwick, Sanford, and York).

There were 594 tax payers listed for Kittery, and I found five of my direct ancestors on that list. 
​

JONATHAN FERNALD [my 6th Great-Grandfather]
1 dwelling house
1 acre, tillage land (10 bushels of grain produced per year)
3 acres of English and Upland mowing land (1 ton of hay per year)
1 cow
1 swine
3 £ - annual worth of whole real estate
​

EBENEZER FERNALD [my 7th Great-Grandfather, 1699-1787]
1 dwelling house
25 acres of pasture
12 barrels of cider per year
7 acres of English/Upland mowing land (6 ton of hay per year)
1 horse
3 cows
6 goats/sheep
1 swine
8 ​£ ann. worth of estate
​

THOMAS BROWN [my 6th Great-Grandfather, 1730-1808]
​- no numbers attributed to him
​

WILLIAM DEARING (DEERING) [my 7th Great-Grandfather, 1706- ]
1 dwelling house
30 acres of pasture
30 acres English/Upland mowing land (22 tons of hay per year)
20 acres of fresh meadow (10 tons of hay per year)
7 cows
7 goats/sheep
2 swine
1 "servant for life"
16 ​£ annual worth of whole real estate
​

JOSEPH CURTIS [my 6th Great-Grandfather, 1721-1772]
1 dwelling house
1 acre of tillage (10 bushels of grain)
4 acres English/Upland mowing land (3 tons of hay per yr)
1 acre fresh meadow (1 ton of hay)
2 cows
5 goats/sheep
1 swine
2 ​£ annual worth in estate
​

NOTE: Page not yet complete, as I would like to add maps to current locations where these properties once stood. This could take awhile!