Tax Abatement Records as Vital Record Substitutes? Yes!

New England is full of all sorts of quirky records than many genealogy researchers overlook. One of the most important of these is the Town Report. The Town Report is not one record but a compilation of many different records.

In a Town Report you’ll find information about town officers, a selectman’s report, a school report, an assessor’s report, a report about the poor. It goes on to include the library, engineering, police department and nearly every major department run by the town and the finances associated with them. What you find in a Town Report will vary from town to town.

Because Town Reports were published annually they provide a closer way to track our ancestors movements, similar to city directories but often with more details. It’s also helps fill in gaps from 1881-1899 that occur because the 1890 U.S. Federal Census was destroyed.

The assessor’s report provides information about poll, personal and real property tax. But there’s another tiny little report, separate from the tax assessments called (Tax) Abatements, With Causes. It’s a list of people who asked for an abatement, or reduction, of their town taxes.

The magical part of this list is the “With Causes” part. The addition of causes turns it from simply a tax list into a vital record substitute. The list details people who have died, been widowed or become ill. It also mentions people who have left town, moved to a specific place, served in the military, or were too poor to be taxed.

Abatements, With Causes

Let’s take a look at a list found in the Town of Franklin (Massachusetts) Annual Report for the Year 1900.

Let’s take a close look at some of the individual items on this list. This is described as the List for 1898. It appears that the details we recorded May 1, 1898.

From Tax Abatement List	Analysis
Bresnahan, Daniel, removed	From the usage of the term “removed” we know that Daniel is no longer living in town.
Eckenstein, Hugo A., not in town May 1, 1898	This entry is very interesting because it is vague. We don’t know for certain if he has left town permanently or temporarily. The 1900 U.S. Federal Census shows Hugo in Cumberland, Providence County, Rhode Island.
Fifield, Horace, dead	This small detail lets you know that Horace Fifield was dead by May 1, 1898. If you have no other death information for him you can use this to narrow down when his death occurred.
Thurman, Harry, in England	This detail is critically important because if you are researching Harry Thurman it may not have occurred to you that he left the country. Now you will have to search records in England for further details.
Keefe, William, age and disability	This mention of age and disability doesn’t give concrete specifics but perhaps William has disappeared from records and you have lost track of him. This detail will let you know that his is still in Franklin in 1898 and doing poorly. We also can say from this that he died in 1898 or later.
Kershaw, John A., in Nova Scotia	Another person that we will now have to search for outside of the United States. This time we’ll need to look in Canada.
Randall, Frank H., not 20 years old May 1, 1898	This wonderful detail helps us narrow down Frank’s birth to May 2, 1898 or later.
Shea, Dr. Daniel F., dead	Another person who has conclusively died by May 1, 1898.
Buter, Nicholas, in Italy	In 1898 Nicholas is in Italy. Is he perhaps an immigrant who went back and forth? I would check for references to him in previous Town Reports and I would also consider searching for him with variations on his surname such as Butter or Butera.
Black, Charles H., dead Dudley, Alonzo, dead Farley, David, dead George, Mark, dead	More individuals that conclusively died by May 1, 1898.
Emory, Warren, in Cuban Army	This detail suggests that we should check not only Cuban records, if possible, but also military records. Again, with this name I would also search name variations such as Emery and Emary. His name suggests that he is American rather than native Cuban. There is probably an interesting story behind this note! Here’s some background on the Spanish-American War.
Gage, Nelson, insane and in poorhouse	This is another person who might have disappeared from more conventional records because of his mental state and his economic status. This record helps us conclude that he was still alive May 1, 1898. We also can say from this that he died in 1898 or later.
Frier, Thomas, same as Thomas Fraher	It seems that Thomas was taxed twice under two different spellings of his name. This is a good reminder that we consistently need to search for surname variations to find records of our ancestors.

Perhaps the tax abatements had not been included in the Town Reports for a few years because in the Franklin Town Report for 1900 we also find the abatement list for 1899.

From 1899 Tax Abatement List	Analysis
McKean, Peter, poll and personal, under age	Another mention letting us know that this person was not yet 20 years old when the abatement was recorded.
Farrell, John heirs, real estate, widow’s exemption	From this detail we can conclude not only that John Farell was dead by 1899 but that he also left behind a widow. This also tells us that his widow is still alive at this time and we can expect to find her listed until her own death. A memorial from FindaGrave.com shows that John Farrell died in 1892 and that his wife, Anne, died in 1911.
Fitzpatrick, Joseph F., real estate, soldier’s exemption	Joseph Fitzpatrick received and exemption for his military service. We learned two things from this 1) he owned real estate so we should check for a deed and 2) he served in the military so we should check for military service records.

Where to Find Massachusetts Town Reports

You will most likely find historical Town Reports in the library, town hall or historical society in the specific town you are researching. Check the online catalog of the local library to see if they are listed there. You many have to call or email the town hall or historical society to see if they have copies.

The Boston Public Library also has a collection of Town Reports for various towns in Massachusetts. See their online catalog for details.

Some Town Reports can be found online on the Internet Archive. Don’t expect to find a full set or to see every town included.

Lastly, set up an alert on eBay. Massachusetts Town Reports have been known to pop up there for sale.