Welcome to Ancestral Journeys, my genealogy research blog. Researching one's ancestors is like taking a journey back through time. Each of our ancestors have a story and those stories are waiting to be told. I hope to do that, as well as outline research methods and other information relating to genealogy and family history. Even if we do not share the same ancestry, I hope you will find some of the discussion and ideas of benefit. For my complete profile, click on the 'About' tab at the top of the page.
Using Tax Lists
Posted by dwsuddarth on 12 October 2009
Tax lists can help your research in many ways. Because taxes were collected annually, they can help to fill in the years between census enumerations. In addition, in most cases, they can provide information regarding land and property ownership.
James Suddarth enlisted in the Kentucky Militia in 1813 for the War of 1812. He enlisted on 1 January 1813 at Lexington, Fayette County, Kentucky. He then enlisted again on 18 August 1813 in Casey County, Kentucky. I consulted the Casey County, Kentucky tax lists and found the following:
| NAME | YEAR | COUNTY | AGE | |||
| Sutherds, John | 1809 | Casey | above 21 | |||
| Suddith, John | 1812 | Casey | above 21 | |||
| Sudderath, James | 1812 | Casey | above 21 | |||
| Suddearth, John | 1813 | Casey | above 21 | |||
| Suddearth, James | 1813 | Casey | under 21 | |||
| Suddearth, John | 1814 | Casey | above 21 | |||
| Suddearth, James | 1814 | Casey | under 21 | |||
| Suddearth, John | 1815 | Casey | above 21 | |||
| Suddith, John | 1817 | Casey | 2 above 21 |
James first appears in 1812. He is listed as above age 21. However, the James I am looking for was born in 1795, making him only 17 in 1812. He would not have been 21 until 1816. All the other years in which he appears, he is listed as under age 21. In the Casey County, Kentucky Court Orders Book 1, 1806-1817, page 250, the following appears:
June the 27th 1814
Satisfactory proof being made to the Court that James Southerd stands charged with the County for two tithes one in 1812 and the other in 1813. when he was really under age it is therefore ordered that the sheriff of this County have a credit for said tithes in his collection of the County levy.
Even though James was listed as above age 21 in 1812, this document tells us that he was actually under 21. This document also states that even though he was listed as under 21 in 1813, he was still taxed.
Further examination of the tax lists show that John did not own any land (he was not taxed for any land). If this is true, there would be no land records to assist in locating and tracing him.
However, from the tax lists, it appears that John may be the father of James. With this new information, I will begin a search of all available records for a John Suddarth in Casey County, Kentucky.
