A permanent wound: How the slave tax warped Alabama finances

In the late spring or early summer of 1822, a man named Bolling Hall made a list of all his property before taking it to the Autauga County assessor and paying his taxes.

On the left side of a piece of parchment, Hall listed hundreds of acres of land he’d acquired since leaving Georgia four years before. He would pay between $2 and $8 an acre on it.

He listed a gold watch, as well as a coach, which he valued at $250. The state would collect about $2.50 on it.

And in the top right-hand corner, Hall listed “15 negroes under 10 years” and “30 negroes over 10 years.”

Read more: http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/news/politics/southunionstreet/2017/02/05/permanent-wound-how-slave-tax-warped-alabama-finances/97447706/

Cross-posted in the African American Group.