England, Cheshire, Land Tax Assessments - FamilySearch Historical Records

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Collection Time Period
The land tax assessments that are available from Cheshire range from 1778 to 1832.

Record History
Land tax assessments began in 1692 and ended in 1963. Most of the surviving collection of land tax assessments range from 1780 to 1832. The tax was administered through the Court of Quarter Sessions of the Peace. They were organized by county, hundred, and parish. From 1692 to 1831, Catholics were assessed a double portion. Coverage for this tax was aimed at the landowners and the tenants who rented from the landowners. That ranged from nobility to peasant.

Why This Record Was Created
The land tax assessments were used to keep track of who paid taxes from year to year. It also doubled as a voter registration from 1780 to 1832.

Record Reliability
If an ancestor is a landholder or a land renter, then he or she should be listed. The records are most reliable between 1780 and 1832 because they doubled as voting registration. Not all family members are listed, just the responsible person. After 1832, not all occupiers were listed.

Record Description
Most of the physical documents were handwritten, but there were also printed forms where assessors could fill in the blanks.

Record Content
Key genealogical facts found in most Cheshire Land Tax Assessments are:


 * Name of the place
 * The year for the tax assessment
 * The year for the tax assessment
 * Name of proprietors or landowners
 * Names of the occupiers or tenants
 * Sums assessed are arranged in pounds, shillings, and pennies.
 * In some documents there is an additional column for sums redeemed in pounds, shillings, and pennies.
 * In some cases there are additional columns that keep track of additional taxes or sum redemptions in pounds, shillings, and pennies.
 * Includes the name or names of the assessors
 * Includes the name or names of the collectors
 * Includes the names of those who approved the taxes

How to Use the Record
Use these records to find male ancestors (and some female, where no male head of house existed). The records will reveal where they lived and how much they paid in land tax from year to year. If they rented the land, then the landowner is also identified.

Related Web Sites
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Related Wiki Articles
England Land and Property

Sources of This Collection
“England, Cheshire, land tax assessments, 1778-1832,” database, FamilySearch; 2009, from Cheshire Record Office. "Land Tax Assessments." Cheshire Record Office, Chester (England). FHL microfilm, 113 reels. Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah.

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