Look for Tax Records to Help You Identify More About Your South Carolina Ancestor

Tax records help us reveal more about an ancestor, especially in between census years. When you cannot find an ancestor in the census or when records are scarce, try tax records to prove residence or if an ancestor was over 21. To find tax records for South Carolina ancestors, read Use Tax Records to Document Your Ancestor or the Enslaver in South Carolina. You can also review the type of information in a tax record.

When looking for the ancestors of Cora Chappell Vance (1894 – 1986) before 1900,George Chappelle ( – 1874) and Mary, great grandparents, all we had was the 1870 and 1880 Census and a probate record until Jan Mitchell-McDermott decided to look at the tax records.

Can you imagine how wonderful it felt when she found 5 tax records for George from 1870 to his death in 1874? I could also begin to trace other people with the same name, colored and not. These people could then be traced using the census and other records to document them in families.

George Chapelle’s ( – 1874) 1870 tax record:

George Chappelle’s 1871 tax record:

George Chappelle’s ( – 1874) 1872 tax record:

George Chappelle’s ( -1874) 1874 tax record:

This was the last tax record for George Chappelle ( – 1874) because he died in 1874 according to his probate record:

Sharpen the Saw

Try to find your ancestor in tax records. Look for them in order. Compare people having the same name. You may find some in tax records that will need to be documented in families. Let us know about your findings in our Facebook Group.