New York Tax Records
This entry was originally written by Roger D. Joslyn, CG, FUGA, FGBS, FASG for Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources.
Scattered town and precinct tax records for a few years in the 1770s and 1780s and nearly complete lists for the whole state (1799'1804) are at the New York State Archives and New York State Library'Manuscripts and Special Collections, although for the latter period the surviving 1804 rolls cover only delinquent taxes of nonresidents. New York City tax records are at the Municipal Archives (see New York Archives, Libraries, and Societies) and, for 1699 to 1734, on microfilm at the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. Some early assessment rolls have been published in The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, such as those for New York City, 1730, in volume 95; New Rochelle, 1767, in volume 107; and Ulster County (1709'21) in volume 62. See also volumes 43-44 of the New-York Historical Society's Collections for New York City assessments (1695'99). A few counties such as Ontario have retained their early tax records, but most do not have them until about 1850 or even later. Many old tax lists are to be found in manuscript collections. Dutchess County is fortunate to have a long series of eighteenth century tax records. See Clifford M. Buck, Dutchess County, NY, Tax Lists 1718'1787 with Rombout Precinct by William Willis Reese, edited by Arthur and Nancy Kelly (Rhinebeck, N.Y.: Kinship, 1990).
Some of the 1798 U.S. Direct Tax records survive for New York. Two published examples are David Kendall Martin, 'A 1798 United States Assessment List for Northern New York State [Plattsburgh],' The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record 113 (1982): 93-102, and C. R. Carey, 'Town of Deer Park 1798 Assessment Records,' Orange County Historical Society Publication No. 8 (Goshen, 1978'79): 13-25. Later federal tax records for New York are at the National Archives'Northeast Region. One early federal tax list was published for New York City: The Income Record: A List Giving the Taxable Income for the Year 1863, of Every Resident of New York (New York: The American News Co., 1865).
One list of published New York tax records is Roger D. Joslyn, 'New York State Censuses and Tax Lists,' The NYG&B Newsletter 9 (1998): 17-19. Henry's B. Hoff's 'Pre-1750 New York Lists: Censuses, Assessment Rolls, Oaths of Allegiance, and Other Lists,' also in the Newsletter 3 (1992): 20-22, includes earlier published tax lists.
