In 1989 when I purchased
photocopies of taxable property recorded in Captain Glenn’s Company, the three undated
documents were filed in box no. CR.060.701.4 which covers the years 1817-1820. Those dates are not appropriate
for the following returns in Captain Glenn’s Company.
I have arbitrarily labeled
the three documents as A, B, and C, and I am presenting them here together for
comparison purposes. Document C’s totals deducts forty-four acres and labels it
as “Gaston” without further explanation. The acreage and value and poll match
the listing for George Dellinger. Gaston
County officially became a county on 21 December 1846. Perhaps undated list C was
compiled in 1846 and adjusted in 1847.
Consistency between the
three lists of taxpayers suggests that Lists A and B date earlier than List C.
Possibly the three lists are for consecutive years, i.e. 1844 (List A), 1845
(List B), and 1846 (List C). This is only a suggested dating pattern. On the
other hand, lists “A” and “B” could be duplicate copies for the same year.
Researchers aware of when
a person became eligible for poll tax at age 21 and therefore taxable the
following year, or when a taxpayer moved away, or when a taxpayer died and his
widow or heirs appeared on tax records, should apply that chronological data to
the taxpayers on the three lists of Captain Glenn’s Company.
Please keep in mind that the
scribe’s 7’s and 9’s in document C are very similar and consulting the original
in combination with land chronology may be necessary to determine the exact
acreage.
