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Online Resources

 * 1865-1866 For Alabama Images only.

Why Use Tax Records
Tax record content varies and may include the name and residence of the taxpayer, description of the real estate, name of original purchaser, description of personal property, number of males over 21, number of school children, slaves, and farm animals. Tax records usually are arranged by date and locality and are not normally indexed. Tax records can be used in place of missing land and census records to locate a person’s residence.

County Level
Poll tax records for many counties are generally kept in the probate clerk’s office. Poll taxes were imposed on all males of voting age, usually age 21. They generally were taken from the time the county was created. The lists are often organized by beat and then alphabetically by the first letter of the surname. Some of these records are on microfilm at the Family History Library.

Tax Laws
On July 1, 1862, Congress passed the Internal Revenue Act, creating the Bureau of Internal Revenue (later renamed to the Internal Revenue Service). This act was intended to “provide Internal Revenue to support the Government and to pay interest on the Public Debt.” Instituted in the height of the Civil War, the “Public Debt” at the time primarily consisted of war expenses.