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Genealogy’s Secret Weapon: Tax Records from Whiskey to Watches
...in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes (and the clues they leave behind).
Death and taxes — Benjamin Franklin's famous certainty turns out to be very good news for genealogists. Because everything from whiskey to watches, from land to livestock, was taxed at one point or another, tax records rank among the most powerful and underused tools in the genealogical toolkit.
Established and collected at local, county or parish, state and federal levels, tax records exist in extraordinary variety — and they survive in places and for periods where other records simply do not. Whether head taxes, property assessments, or specialized levies on goods and occupations, these records capture individuals and families who left little trace elsewhere.
In this live workshop with Judy G. Russell, you'll learn how to identify, locate, and extract meaningful genealogical data from tax records across a wide range of record types, jurisdictions, and time periods. You’ll see how they can be used to resolve identity questions, track movement over time, and provide evidence for relationships and economic status. If you’ve hit a brick wall, tax records may be the tool you’ve been missing.
Details
Workshop Cost: $157 (US dollars) for 4 hours (2 sessions each of 2 hours)
When: 7 & 14 October 2026 @ 7 PM Eastern US
Where: via ZOOM. All sessions are closed captioned, recorded and available for viewing for 14 days following each session. A comprehensive handout is provided. Attendance is limited to 30 participants.
About Judy G. Russell, JD, CG®, CGL®, FUGA
The Legal Genealogist® Judy G. Russell is a genealogist with a law degree who writes and lectures on topics ranging from using court records in family history to understanding DNA testing.
An internationally-known lecturer and award-winning writer, she holds credentials as a Certified Genealogist® and Certified Genealogical Lecturer® from the Board for Certification of Genealogists®.
Her blog is at https://www.legalgenealogist.com.
Benefits for Family Historians
Find ancestors where others can’t
Use tax records to uncover individuals and families who may not appear in census or vital records.
Track movement and timelines with precision
Follow your ancestors year by year between major record sets and establish where they were — and when.
Understand lives beyond names and dates
Interpret tax data to reveal economic status, occupation, property ownership, and changes over time.
Resolve identity and common-name problems
Use tax lists to distinguish between individuals with the same name and build stronger, evidence-based conclusions.
Work across multiple record types and jurisdictions
Gain confidence navigating tax records created at local, county or parish, state, and federal levels.
Apply immediately to your own research
Leave with practical strategies you can use straight away to tackle brick walls and extend your research further.
Queensland, AUSTRALIA
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