IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1862 - 1918 on ALE

On July 1, 1862, Congress passed the Internal Revenue Act, creating the Bureau of Internal Revenue (later renamed to the Internal Revenue Service). This act was intended to “provide Internal Revenue to support the Government and to pay interest on the Public Debt.” Instituted in the height of the Civil War, the “Public Debt” at the time primarily consisted of war expenses.

The Internal Revenue Act also established the Office of Commissioner of Internal Revenue and allowed the country to be divided into collection districts, of which assessors and collectors were appointed. Among the 10,517 databases or so in Ancestry Library Edition is the U.S., IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1862 - 1918. 

Taxable goods and services were determined by legislative acts passed throughout the years. All persons, partnerships, firms, associations, and corporations submitted to the assistant assessor of their division, a list showing the amount of annual income, articles subject special taxes and duties, and the quantity of goods made or sold that were charged with taxes or duties. The assistant assessors collected and compiled these lists into two general lists. These lists were:

1. A list of names of all individuals residing in the division who were subject to taxation

2. A list of names of all individuals residing outside the division, but who were owners of property in the division

These lists were organized alphabetically according to surname and recorded the value, assessment, or enumeration of taxable income or items and the amount of tax due. After all examinations and appeals, copies of these lists were given to the collector who then went and collected the taxes.

The assessment lists are divided into 3 categories:

1. Annual

2. Monthly

3. Special

Annual and monthly lists are for taxes assessed or collected within those periods of time. Special lists supplemented incomplete annual and monthly lists and also included any taxes that were indicated as “special” by the assessors.

About the Records:

Form 23, Assessment List, was the form used for many years to record tax information. Although there are several different versions of this form, it generally recorded:

• Name of Collection District
• Name of Collector
• Date of the list
• Instructions for completing the form
• Name of person or business being taxed
• Address
• Taxable period
• Amount reported by the collector
• Remarks on the assessment
• Article or occupation taxed
• Record of payment if the tax was paid
• Amount paid or abated

Form 58, List of Unassessable Collections, recorded the receipt and disbursement of unassessed collections. Unassessed collections could include: conscience money, paid court order fines, and offers of compromise, among others. There are records in this database relating to South Carolina but only for the period 1864-1866. Records from 38 other states for various other spans of time are also included. 

I used the US, IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1862 - 1918 database within ALE  to see if I could find any records related to my own ancestors who lived in Beaufort District for generations. And I did! 

As it turned out, the Tax Assessment Lists for Beaufort District appear in the records of South Carolina District 2, Division #8, on pages 482 -486 of the list that was made between August 1865 and December 1866. I learned that my great-great-great uncle T. G. Buckner (who had been Beaufort District's Clerk of Court before and during the Civil War) had to pay the federal government a $2.00 tax on the accessed value of his carriage made on May 1, 1865. According to the revenue agent, the carriage was worth $200.00.

Perhaps you should explore this particular database in Ancestry Library Edition in hopes of discovering one of your ancestors listed therein, too. 

Search Tips for Ancestry Library Edition

In my not so humble opinion, one of the good things to come out of the COVID-19 public health crisis is how our Library vendor, ProQuest, pivoted to allow us to offer you access at home to

Ancestry Library Edition (ALE for short). Our statistics on ALE access have increased 2  to 3- to 4-times some months since the introduction of  home access back in April 2020. As the statistics show, home access has been a well-embraced new (if perhaps only temporary) Library service. 

We were recently notified that home access will continue at least to 31 December 2021. Hip! Hip! Hooray! But it may - or may not - disappear as an option for our customers at that time. We all will just have to wait and see what happens on that front later this year. In the meantime, I cannot say it loud or often enough: Please take full advantage of free home access to Ancestry Library Edition while you can. 

I'm sure that when you watch broadcast television, you've seen some of the many Ancestry.com advertisements. One knows from watching the ads that Ancestry.com is one of the biggest family history websites available. But just how big a website is it? The Company Facts landing page of their website boasts of generating over $1 billion in revenue per year; providing more than 30 billion records online; and having test results for over 20 million people in the World's largest consumer DNA network that the company owns. So, yes, it's big - and as a library customer, you have access to some of Ancestry.com's major features through the Beaufort County Library's subscription to Ancestry Library Edition. 

Borrowing blatantly from a FamilyTree e-mail newsletter article by Gena Philibert-Ortega that just arrived in my in-box, here are a few tips to get started using Ancestry Library Edition at home in an efficient and effective (and I hope, successful) manner. 

1. Take advantage of the CARD CATALOG. The card catalog lists every database on ALE - which as I am writing this post contains 10,715 databases. (The number of databases tomorrow could be even higher as ALE is a dynamic website.) 

Though the landing page for ALE forces you to plug in a name, any name, into the search box, I want you to approach ALE not like the television ads suggest but as a more experienced researcher would. I want you to choose the "SEARCH" tab next to the Ancestry Library logo on the tool bar. 

Open the "SEARCH" tab and select "CARD CATALOG" from the drop-down box. Now you can see the titles of all 10,715 databases found in ALE. While you can search the Card Catalog by keyword or title by using the search boxes on the left side, also note that on the right side at the top of the results list, you can also sort the full results list by Database Title, Date Updated, Date Added or Record Count. Recently added databases are indicated by a "NEW" icon; recently updated databases are indicated by a "UPDATED" icon.

Going back to the options in the left column on the "CARD CATALOG" landing page, you can filter results lists by COLLECTION type; by LOCATION; by DATE (usually in centuries or decades) and by LANGUAGE (the default for ALE is English). In other words, there are a lot of options to consider when designing your search for information and records about your forebearers. 

2. Sometimes defer searching for your ancestors by name within an ALE database. 

A second key point that Ms. Philibert-Ortega makes is that not all Ancestry.com - and by extension, ALE - databases are searchable by name. For example, when you filter the 10,715 databases in ALE by COLLECTION type and limit to "PICTURES", you discover 39 PICTURES databases, some of which allow searching by a person's name and some which do not allow searching by a person's name. The school yearbooks included do allow searching by a person's name whereas the historical postcard collections listed do not. The landing page for each of the PICTURES databases indicates what type of search is allowed. 

If you're disappointed in the smaller number of databases provided through ALE in comparison with all that come with a personal subscription to Ancestry.com, just let me remind you that the Library pays for you to use ALE at home for free as long as you have a valid Beaufort County Library card and the proper password. (Need a Library card? No problem. Details on who is eligible and how to get one are on the Library's website.) Advancing my argument even further, the amount of your tax money that goes towards providing County Library services of all kinds per year would barely pay for one month of individual access to Ancestry.com. (Public libraries are so great!!!) What a deal home access to ALE is for you - all courtesy of the COVID-19 pandemic and the fine folks at ProQuest! Available while home access remains in effect.

Reminder: Due to continuing staff shortage and the small physical space in the public area of the Research Room, limited access to the Research Room will continue into the foreseeable future. (It takes time to select and train a new assistant.) All arrangements must be made - and confirmed - in advance of the proposed date for the appointment. No arrangements can be made or confirmed outside of  business hours as staff are not available 24/7/365 to respond to customer inquiries. Under the present circumstances, we regret that walk-in researchers and same-day appointments cannot be accepted.  Contact information is provided in the image.

Looking ahead: Please pencil into your calendar that the Library - and the BDC - will observe Independence Day on Monday, July 5th. All library units, including the Beaufort District Collection, will be closed on Monday, July 5th. 

Spaniards (and one Cuban) in Beaufort District, 1521 - 1920

Last updated: 20 August 2024 - gmc

Every year since 1968 the contributions of Spain and its former colonies and peoples have been highlighted in mid-September. What began as a week of celebrations has become a month of commemoration from mid-September into mid-October. In the case of Beaufort District, the Spaniards established the first European colony and held the first Catholic Mass in what was to become South Carolina in the 16th century. For a time the capital of New Spain was based at Santa Elena on Parris Island. The foothold lasted about 20 years before the Spaniards were forced to retreat to St. Augustine. You can learn the history of the Spanish settlements by reviewing the "Spaniards in 16th Century Beaufort District" WordPress blog post.

Then came centuries in which few, if any, Spaniards, Mexicans, Cubans, Central Americans, or South Americans visited or stay in the Beaufort District long enough to be counted on the decennial Federal Census. South Carolina's percentage of immigrants had been quite small in relation to the number of immigrants received in other states. The following chart is based on information found in "History of Immigration to the United States". 

Percentage of Historical Foreign-Born Population, 1850 - 1920

                    United States                            South Carolina 

1850                       9.7                                          1.3                                          

1860                      13.2                                         1.4                      

1870                      14.4                                         1.1

1880                      13.3                                         0.8

1890                      14.8                                         0.5

1900                      13.6                                         0.4

1910                      14.7                                         0.4

1920                      13.2                                         0.4

                                  

I did find a few immigrants from Spain and Cuba through access to the Ancestry Library Edition database. Please note: This list is by no means even remotely conclusive.  

Spanish immigration to the United States was less than 7000 persons between 1820 and 1850. The 1850 US Federal Census for St. Peter's Parish lists one John Saviana, a 29 year old manager whose birthplace was "Madrid. " But he can neither read nor write English. Most business managers would need to be literate. At the time of the 1850 Census the major business in St. Peter's Parish was agriculture. My hunch is that therefore he may have been an overseer for one of the nearby listed plantation owners. On that particular census page, there are more than a few men whose occupation is given as "manager." Saviana was not listed in Beaufort District in the 1860 Federal census. 

Ambrosio José Gonzales was a Cuban who established family ties to the area through marriage. His wife was  Harriet Elliott of Beaufort, a daughter of planter, lawyer, and politician William Elliott, III. He first arrived in Beaufort in 1851. Their South Carolina plantation of residence was in St. Paul's Parish, Colleton District. Gonzales was a conspirator for Cuban independence from Spain both before and after he joined the Confederate Artillery during the Civil War. Cuban Confederate Colonel by Antoino Rafael de la Cova recounts Gonzales's military and family history. Their sons would go on to establish The State newspaper and be subjected to one of South Carolina's biggest scandals of the early 20th century. 

About 5300 Spaniards emigrated to the United States between 1871 - 1880. In contrast with much of the South, Reconstruction was a booming era for Beaufort County. According to Wise and Rowland, in 1880 "Beaufort County [was] the largest phosphate port in the United States." More than $250,000 worth of phosphate shipped out to the United Kingdom that year alone. There were plenty of good paying, though difficult, jobs to be had in the area. The work would attract men who had once been enslaved and immigrants. The success of the trade led to a large increase of maritime traffic and congestion in St. Helena and Port Royal Sounds. After a number of shipwrecks caused by hurricanes, shifting sandbars, and strong currents in St. Helena, regulations were put in place to secure skilled pilots to bring ships safely through the sounds. 

One of the skilled maritime pilots residing in Beaufort District in 1880 was a Spaniard. Antone Santos would marry into another family of pilots, the Von Hartens. The Santos family would move to Charleston County around 1912 where Antone continued his trade in Charleston Harbor. Descendants of the Von Hartens still reside in Beaufort County.

There were other foreign born people who gave their birthplaces as Spain in the 1880 census for Beaufort County though they had English and Irish surnames. Whether or not these people had anglicized their surnames for their new country would require more investigation. Dan B. Conner listed as a 23 year old mulatto physician had been born in Spain as had his parents. A Spaniard going by the name of John Francis was a laborer at one of the phosphate mines; John Davis, an Engineer, gave his country of birth as Spain; John Allen, identified as a Black sailor, told the enumerator that he had been born in Spain of Spanish parents as well.

In 1910 Joseph Martinez, a tailor by trade, and his wife Delores had been born in Spain although both of their young children had been born in Georgia since 1907. They were living in Savannah by 1913 where he continued his work as a tailor. Through the databases within Ancestry Library Edition and its link to the Find-A-Grave website I was able to track Martinez's movements from Beaufort to Savannah to New York to Cleveland, Ohio where he died in 1932. His body was returned for burial in the Catholic Cemetery of Savannah. It appears that the obituary notice posted on the Find-A-Grave website was from a Savannah newspaper though there is no citation given. 

A quick search of the 1920 Federal Census on Ancestry Library Edition for people born in "Spain" living in "Beaufort County South Carolina" resulted in no hits.

Sources for this post: 

Cordial, G.M. (2024, 20 August; 2020, September 13) "Spaniards in 16th Century Beaufort District. "BDCBCL: Links, Lists and Finding Aids." 

Wikipedia contributors. (2020, October 4). History of immigration to the United States in Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 11:17, August 20, 2024.   

Ancestry Library Edition database, US Federal Censuses, 1850, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920. 

Rafael, D. L. (2003). Cuban Confederate Colonel: The Life of Ambrosio José Gonzales. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press.  

Wikipedia contributors. (2020, October 1). "Spanish Americans" in Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 11:42, August 20, 2024. 

Wise, S.R. and Rowland, L.S. (2015). Rebellion, Reconstruction, and Redemption, 1861 - 1893 (The History of Beaufort County, South Carolina, Volume 2). Columbia: University of South Carolina Press.

Find a Grave database and images (accessed 20 August 2024, memorial page for Joseph Martinez (16 Jan 1866 - 16 Apr 1932), Find a Grave Memorial no. 159476475, citing Catholic Cemetery, Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia, USA; Maintained by Candace Smith (contributor 47080262). 

Hurricanes, Bootlegging, and Hospitals

79 years ago the unnamed hurricane of August 11, 1940 had this area in a tizzy. 

According to A History of Storms of the South Carolina Coast by Laylon Jordan (South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, 1940), that hurricane was the "first severe hurricane to strike the South Carolina coast directly in 30 years." When it made landfall near Beaufort, winds were clocked at 105 miles per hour and the entire South Carolina coastal region suffered through a 13-foot storm surge. Total property losses were estimated at $10 million; the death tally was 34. 200 homes were destroyed and at least 1000 houses sustained damage. However the Beaufort Gazette newspaper stated in its August 15, 1940 issue that "the greatest loss to the community is that suffered by the age old lovely oak trees."

10 of the 34 people killed by this storm died in Beaufort County. 9 of the 10 victims were African-American. According to their death certificates, each person drowned. Based on evidence in the 1940 Census- available through the Library's subscription to Ancestry Library Edition -- the Gardner Family of St. Helena Island experienced the worst tragedy arising out of the Hurricane of 1940. Six members of the family died: Ethel, Melka, Frankie, William, Arthur and Marion. The eldest person was 24 years old and the youngest was only a baby. A Civilian Conservation Corp member working on Hunting Island, Ashley Allen, a white young man, got caught by the rising tide and did not survive. Edward Robinson, one of the sons of Stepney Robinson (AKA "Dr. Buzzard"), and Joe L. Williams also died.

At some point, I hope to craft a lecture about the Hurricane of 1940 similar to the one I do about the Great Sea Island Storm of 1893. And speaking of the 1893 hurricane, I'm doing an updated version of my lecture about the biggest, baddest storm to strike Beaufort District to date. All are welcomed to attend on August 28th. It's a first come, first seated presentation.

Another first come, first seated presentation occurs on this Thursday. We also hope that you'll be able to attend Neil Baxley's presentation entitled "Bootlegging in Beaufort and Beyond".

In case you'd like to pencil more local history programs into your calendar, we have two programs scheduled for September:

"Sorrow by the Sea: Civil War Hospitals in Beaufort" with Dave Smoot
Sept. 11, 2019, BDC@ Beaufort Branch, 5:30 PM

"Sorrow by the Sea" is the story of the medical side of the Civil War in Beaufort. First come; first seated. No registration.

"Indigo" with Peggy Pickett
 Sept. 17, 2019, BHM/BCL series @ Beaufort Branch, 2:00 PM

Pickett will explore the history of the production and processing of indigo in mid-18th century South Carolina. Registration for this lecture will open 2 weeks in advance of the program. https://beauforthistorymuseum.wildapricot.org/event-3463469


And don't forget! The Research Room has adjusted hours on Tuesday, August 13th due to an anticipated staff shortage. Research hours will be 9 AM to Noon and 1 PM to 5 PM on that date.

KIA: Pearl Harbor

(National Archives Image)

Last  updated: 7 December 2024 - gmc

A few minutes before 8 o'clock on a quiet Sunday morning, on December 7,  1941 [11:55 am in the Eastern Time Zone] the Japanese launched a surprise air attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii.

Fredrick Holmes Christensen, 1877-1944, was a Beaufort born businessman with lumber, hardware, petroleum, real estate, automobile and truck farming interests here. From 1893 to 1944 he kept an almost daily diary. On Sunday, December 7, 1941, he wrote:

We were electrified today when it was announced from Washington after 2 o'clock that Japanese aeroplanes had attacked the United States Naval base in Hawaian [sic] Islands and Honolulu. 

The assault  lasted less that two hours. On Monday, December 8, 1941, Christensen continued:

The reports from Hawaii are sketchy and incomplete. The Japanese claim they destroyed two battleships, an aeroplane carrier and hit numerous other warships. Washington says one of the older battleships was damaged so badly that she capsized. One destroyer blew up and several other vessels were damaged while 3000 casualties included 1500 killed. Many aeroplanes destroyed. 

As Christensen noted "After one week of war we are still without information on the extent of the damaged [sic] inflicted on our fleet in Hawaii by the Japs last Sunday."  (Diary entry on 14 December 1941). In the chaos and fog of war, sometimes mistakes about damages and casualties are made.

Some lowcountry men are known to have been on Oahu Hawaii the morning of the attack.  Gen. Jacob E. Smart (USAF) authored Lowcountry Families in World War II, A Memorial: We Mourn the Fallen and Honor All Who Served. He compiled biographies of servicemen from Hardeeville, Bluffton, southern Colleton County, Jasper and Hampton Counties. Smart mentioned the following  men from these areas as being present at Pearl Harbor that morning:

• Oden Benton (Colleton County) was wounded by Japanese strafing runs at Bellows Field. He died of his wounds about two weeks later.
• Roland M. Byrd
• Richard A. (Ray) Malphrus
• Joseph Clinton Nettles
• Dr. Frank Ryan was the youngest captain in the United States Navy at the time. He was working at the Hospital. 

He also included Gerald H. Preacher who was a civilian engineer working for General Electric Company on the island and witnessed the attack.

Smart's book does not include service members who were from the population base of Beaufort County at the time, that is, the towns and rural communities of Northern Beaufort County: Beaufort, Port Royal, St. Helena Island, and Burton. However, we know that the effects of the attack impacted Beaufort County in a most significant way: The Beaufort Gazette issue on New Year's Day in 1942 proclaimed "Beaufort Lost Two Citizens at Pearl Harbor."

(BDC - Beaufort Gazette January 1, 1942)

It is significant that the Beaufort Gazette acknowledged the contributions and loss of these African-American brothers. It  went against commonly held views of the period to state "These two boys were citizens of Beaufort County ... and will prove to our state and national that all regardless of race, color or creed, we stand united in common purpose to destroy despotism and to free all peoples who now live under its barbarous masters." But you do notice the use of the now considered pejorative term "boys" in the column text. At the time of the bombing Leon Bush was a young man aged 21 years old. 

After the very popular former SC Representative Stratton Christensen was killed, Fredrick Christensen, his kinsman, wrote this in his diary June 14, 1942:

This has been a pretty "Blue" week for us. Niels [Christensen] went to Boston to tell his Grand-mother of Stratton's loss. I tried to speak of it at the Rotary Club, but though I had thought out what I would say [I] could only give the first two or three opening sentences and had to quit. Everyone is very much interested and sympathetic -- it is the first ^ white^ casualty from Beaufort though two colored boys were killed at Pearl Harbor and two or three have died at camps.

I originally posted this Beaufort Gazette article in a blog post written for the Pearl Harbor anniversary in 2009.  Some years later a Bush family relative visiting our Research Room, Leona Smith, said that Leon had survived the war and had lived to a ripe old age up North. 

When volume 3 of The History of Beaufort County, South Carolina by Lawrence Rowland and Stephen Wise was published in 2015, the authors mention the brothers as among the first casualties from Beaufort County during World War II. The Bush brothers are listed on the Beaufort County's World War II roll of honor along with 36 other men who sacrificed their lives. (pp. 365-366, 375). Given that it was time to highlight the anniversary of Pearl Harbor again by researching some of the local men who were there, I decided to see what documentation I could find to back up the notices of death given in the Beaufort Gazette article. I used printed materials in the BDC and searched the Ancestry Library Edition database which we make available to our customers.

The first place I looked was The Official Roster of South Carolina Servicemen and Servicewomen in World War II, 1941-1946, 5 vols. (South Carolina State Budget and Control Board, 1967), p. 617. There I discovered entries for both men:

"BUSH, LEON W   2626463.  B DALE SC 10 JAN 20. HA NEW YORK NY.    EAD USN 14 AUG 40. HON DISCH    MATT2C  28 JUL 42" which translates to Leon W. Bush's service number is 2626463. He was born in Dale, SC on January 10, 1920. His [current to 1967] home address is New York, New York. He entered active duty in the United States Navy on August 14, 1940. He received an honorable discharge at the rank of MATT2C on 28 July 1942. 

"BUSH, SAMUEL J SN UNKWN. HA BEAUFORT SC. USN    MAIC  KIA" which translates to Samuel J. Bush, whose service number is unknown to the compilers of the official roster, was from Beaufort, SC. He was a sailor in the United States Navy. MAIC isn't listed in the abbreviations list so I am not sure what that means. (Perhaps one of you old tars can enlighten me). Samuel Bush was killed in action. And Post 207, American Legion is named in his honor. 

There is plenty of documentation to confirm that Samuel Jackson Bush, son of Adam W. Bush, died on December 7, 1941:   

• The National Parks Service's World War II Valor in the Pacific website lists Samuel Jackson Bush (USS California) as killed during the attack.
• Official Roster of South Carolina Servicemen and Servicewomen in World War II, 1941 – 1946, p. 617
• Honolulu, Hawaii, National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (Punchbowl), 1941 – 2011 (ALE)
• WWI, WWII, and Korean War Casualty Listings (ALE)
• World War II and Korean Conflict Veterans Interred Overseas (ALE)
• U.S., Navy Casualties Books, 1776-1941 (ALE)
• U.S. World War II Navy Muster Rolls, 1938-1949 (ALE)

Apparently the brothers were on the same ship, the USS California when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. The Bush brothers, like the majority of Black sailors during World War II, served as mess attendants.

U.S. World War II Navy Muster Rolls, 1938-1949 (ALE)

On the Muster Roll written on December 31, 1941, Samuel is listed as “Killed in action in the line of duty” and Leon is listed as having been transferred to the USS Salt Lake City on 13 December 1941. He went on to serve on the Nitro and West Virginia.

I have not been able to ascertain when the error became known to his family. I read all 52 issues of Beaufort Gazette for 1942 but did not see a retraction or announcement that Leon was alive. The Christensen diary entry in June 1942 indicates he believed that the Bush brothers were both dead. Although Christensen makes reference to an event held by the local Black community in memory of those lost at sea on 28 May 1944, the Beaufort Gazette did not cover the event. I was hoping to see if either brother was mentioned at the Memorial service. (In all fairness, the Beaufort Gazette was covering very little local news and was close to shutting down before a new editor leased it in mid-July of 1944). However, in the "Honor List of Those Who Gave Lives in Service" Beaufort Gazette, 19 July 1946, p. 1 only Samuel is listed - which leads me to surmise that news of Leon's survival had reached the area at some point between mid-1942 and mid-1946.

Leon is listed as a survivor in his father’s obituary. 

 

As indicated above, Leon is listed – very much alive -- in the Official Roster of South Carolina Servicemen and Servicewomen in World War II, 1941 – 1946, State Budget and Control Board, 1967, p. 617. He was honorably discharged on July 28, 1942. In 1967 he gave his residence as New York City. Another clue: According to Social Security Death Index records -- if I have the right Leon W. Bush as there are more than a few Leon Bushes listed -- he lived to be 90 years old and died in Barnstable Massachusetts on November 3, 2010.

Dr. Rowland assures me that when volume 3 is revised, the error will be corrected to reflect that only Samuel died in the attack.  

Though their names appear in the indexes to the Men and Women in World War II Scrapbooks, I was unable to find any other references to them in the two volumes. 

Post 207 of the American Legion was chartered and named in memory of  Samuel Jackson Bush in 1959.  

The moral of this post? Emulate President Ronald Reagan: "Trust but verify" using sources at hand in the Library. Identify the potential sources (which can change over time), check those sources, and corroborate what you think you know  - because sometimes what you think you know might be wrong.

Tracing Your Revolutionary War Ancestor

Please note: This post was last updated 24 May 2024. - gmc 

Today's post concentrates on Library materials and databases about Revolutionary War soldiers and sympathizers. Perhaps some of your ancestors fought in the war for American Independence - and the Library has resources to help you find out! Taking that one step further, perhaps some of your ancestors fought in the Revolution and you are applying for membership into one or more of the Revolutionary War related heritage societies listed on the FamilySearch website. 

Genealogical research always benefits from some historical context. The Revolutionary War in South Carolina had an enduring impact and involved a great deal of fighting -- more so than in any other British colony. We suggest that you begin by reading Chapters 12 and 13 of A History of Beaufort County, South Carolina, vol. 1,1514-1861 by Lawrence Rowland. (Call # SC 975.799 ROW) that discusses how the American Revolution unfolded here in Beaufort District. Check out a copy from the local history section at your favorite Beaufort County Library branch.

Attack on Savannah, Oct. 8, 1779 (National Archives)

Establishing your blood ties to a Revolutionary War soldier can be thrilling, time-consuming, and may afford you the opportunity to join a heritage society such as the Sons of the American Revolution or the Daughters of the American Revolution. There are other fraternal and social organizations that only accept members who can prove through documentary evidence that they are descended from a Patriot or Loyalist. To get started, one must know a little about the various types of military service related records.

General Types of Military Records

Military records provide a variety of information about an individual and could include their birthplace, age at enlistment, occupation, and names of immediate family members. Some types of military records include:

 Service records: Service records for militia, volunteer, or regular forces document that an individual served in the military and can provide your ancestor’s unit or organization.

 Draft, Conscription, or Selective Service Records: Since 1863, the federal government has registered millions of men who may have been eligible for military service. Enrollment and Draft information include name residence, age, occupation, marital status, birthplace, physical description, and other information.

 Bounty Land Warrants: The federal government provided bounty land for those who served in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War, and Indian wars between 1790 and 1855.

 Pension Records: The federal government and some state governments granted pensions or bounty land to officers, disabled veterans, needy veterans, widows or orphans of veterans, and veterans who served a certain length of time. Pension records usually contain more genealogical information than service records. However, not every veteran received or applied for a pension.

Materials in the Beaufort District Collection as well as in our branch libraries can help you work your ancestral line. In order to do ancestral research properly, you must make accurate notes of the work you've done. Here are a few suggestions to get you started uncovering your Patriot or Loyalist or Tory roots.

Ancestry Library Edition

Ancestry has a YouTube channel that includes a 4 minute video "Using the Sons of the American Revolution Applications" that offers you some handy tips.

At the present time, ALE has 73 Revolutionary War related databases one can search for American Patriots and Tories. 

You can also use the Ancestry Library Edition suite to access Census records. Finding a clue in the census that says an ancestor served in a specific war can speed up your search for associated military records. For example in the 1840 census, you’ll find names of surviving Revolutionary War veterans. 

All branch libraries provide access to ALE. If you want one-on-one help with Ancestry Library Edition, call the BDC at 843-255-6468 or send us an e-mail to bdc@bcgov.net.

SC 369.135 DAR PT. 1- 3 DAR Patriot Index: Centennial Edition by the Daughters of the American Revolution (Washington, DC: National Society of the DAR Centennial Administration, c1994).

Covers Patriots whose service has been established through DAR membership applications submitted between October 1890 and 11 October 1990. Part 1: Surnames beginning with A - F; Part 2: Surnames beginning with G - O; and, Part 3: Surnames beginning with P - Z.  

SC 929.3 BOC 1998 Revolutionary War Bounty Land Grants Awarded by State Governments by Lloyd DeWitt Bockstruck (Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing, 1996).

"A land bounty is a grant of land from a government as a reward to pay citizens for the risks and hardships they endured in the service of their country, usually in a military related capacity." This volume lists bounty land grants in Connecticut, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, and "Virginia-Indiana."- introduction

SC 929.3 BOC 2011 Revolutionary War Pensions Awarded by State Governments, 1775 – 1874, the General and Federal governments prior to 1814, and by Private Acts of Congress to 1905 by Lloyd de Witt Bockstruck, (Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing, [2011]).                                                      More than 16,500 pensioners are featured in this work compiled in an attempt to identify and recreate the Revolutionary War pension files generated prior to the disastrous fire in the War Department on 8 November 1800, which destroyed nearly a quarter-century of records.

SC REF 929.3 STU Stub Entries to Indents issued in payments of Claims against South

Carolina growing out of the Revolution (Columbia SC: The Historical Commission of South Carolina, 1910-1939).

973.3 EDG 2001 Partisans & Redcoats: The Southern Campaign that Turned the Tide of the American Revolution by Walter Edgar (New York: Morrow, 2001). 

SC REF 973.314 LAM South Carolina Loyalists in the American Revolution by Robert

Lambert (Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 1987).

SC 973.343 MOS 2004 African-American Patriots in the Southern Campaign of the American Revolution by Bobby G. Moss and Michael C. Scoggins (Blacksburg, SC: Scotia-Hibernia Press, 2004).

SC 973.353 MOS 2005 African-American Loyalists in the Southern Campaign of the American Revolution by Bobby G. Moss and Michael C. Scoggins (Blacksburg, SC: Scotia-Hibernia Press, 2005).

REF 973.344 AFR African American and American Indian Patriots of the Revolutionary

War (Washington, D.C.: National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, 2001).                  

Note: This is also available free as a downloadable PDF file. Online the title is "Forgotten Patriots: African American and American Indian Patriots of the Revolutionary War." Please note: The item is 874 pages so it can take some time for the item to download. 

Gen. Benjamin Lincoln (National Archives)

SC REF 973.3457 ERV South Carolinians in the Revolution by Sara Ervin ([S.l.]: Genealogical Publishing, 1965). 

SC REF 973.3457 GAR Anecdotes of the Revolutionary War in America with sketches of character of persons the most distinguished, in the Southern States, for Civil and Military services by Alexander Garden (Charleston, SC: A.E. Miller, 1822). Also available online available online through Hathitrust. 

SC 973.3457 GRU 2013 South Carolina in the American Revolution: a source guide for genealogists and historians by Eric G. Grundset for the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. (Washington, D.C.: National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, 2013).

SC REF 973.3457 MOS Roster of South Carolina Patriots in the American Revolution

by Bobby Moss ([S.l.]: Genealogical Publishing, 1985).

SC 973.38 JOH Traditions and reminiscences, chiefly of the American revolution in the South : including biographical sketches, incidents, and anecdotes, few of which have been published, particularly of residents in the upper country by Joseph Johnson ([S.l.] : Walker and James 1851). Also available online through Hathitrust.

State of South Carolina Records on Microfilm in the BDC Research Room:

Beaufort is a "Burned County": Almost all of our pre-Civil War records were destroyed in 1865. This fact makes genealogy more challenging here. For this reason, the BDC has 18 series of microfilmed records from the SC State Archives on hand. Among those most important for identifying American Revolution ancestors are:

South Carolina Tax Returns, 1783-1800. (2 rolls)

This series supplies information about land owners and size of holdings that census records and deed books leave out for the period covered. Printed guide is available in our Research Room. 

Records of the South Carolina Treasury, 1775-1780. (6 rolls)  This office was critical to the operation of the newly independent colony and funding of the Revolutionary War effort. The records reflect the increased responsibilities of the revolutionary treasury as the expenses of the war and the problems of supplying the new government grew. They hold a wealth of information on the financial management of the colony during this period and detail military expenditures. Printed guide is available in our Research Room.

Accounts Audited Growing Out of the Revolution in South Carolina. (165 rolls)

This is a fundamental genealogical and historical resource for information regarding the

Revolutionary War era. Printed guide is available in our Research Room. You can search series S108092 online via the Online Records Index at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History. 

South Carolina Will Transcripts, 1782-1868. (31 rolls)

This is a fundamental genealogical and historical resource for the period covered. Printed guide is available in our Research Room.  You can search series L10125 online via the Online Records Index at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History.

South Carolina State Plats, Charleston Series, 1784-1860; Columbia Series, 1796-1868. (30 rolls)

These plats are an essential source for genealogy and local history as well as a good mine of primary documentation for social, cultural, and economic historical studies. Printed guide is available in our Research Room. Indexed online via the Online Records Index at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History.

Memorials of the 17th and 18th Century South Carolina Land Titles. (7 rolls)

We have 1 printed volume of memorials to quitrents. This series is far more extensive than the printed volumes available. In certain cases, this is the only surviving record of a particular transaction, containing Proprietary land grants, certificates of admeasurements, wills, leases, and releases. Printed guide is available in our Research Room. Partially indexed online via the Online Records Index at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History.

Using the guides to collections held at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History can be a bit daunting. Be sure to read the "Searching the SCDAH Summary Guide and Online Catalog" by Katharine Slover on the Silver Crescent Standard: The Blog of the South Carolina Department of Archives and History (8 August 2019) for guidance. 

The information on the SCDAH's page about its Digital Collections and downloading the list of digitized genealogical related materials at the SCDAH may prove very helpful. 

If you'd like to set up an appointment to sit down with one of our staff for one-on-one assistance with our materials or to use the microfilm we have, please e-mail bdc@bcgov.net or call 843-255-6468. We'll do our best to work out a date and time that is mutually agreeable. 

Source of Images: 
Attack on Savannah, Oct. 8,1779. Illustration by A.I. Keller. 148-GW-1120. National Archives 

Lincoln, Benjamin. Painting (3/4 length) by Henry Sargent. 111-SC-92618 National Archives