Property Tax Rolls are another source for genealogists to tap into for family history research. The Dupage County Tax Accessors Office, for example, has all Tax Roll records available on line at this link.

I turned to the Tax Roll records to gain a sense of when Michael Daleiden (Christopher Daleiden’s brother) owned land and was paying taxes in Winfield Township in Dupage County Illinois. The 1864 listing provided a legal description verifying the Township, Range, Section, half and quarter Section of where the property was located. I will use this information to tract down any land deeds showing when Michael actually purchased the property on Mack Road. I used the 1874 Atlas for Dupage County and worked back in the Tax Roll records year-by-year until I located Michael’s name for the first time on the Tax Rolls 1864. Could this be narrowing down the clues as to the whereabouts of Michael following his immigration to American? His name was not on any of the Rolls prior to the year of 1864.

The other benefit of reviewing the Tax Rolls side-by-side with the U.S. Census is learning surnames of what has been termed by Genealogists as F.A.N.s (Friends, Associates and Neighbors). The large and longtime landowners along Mack Road include: Macks, Fairbanks, Mathers, Triplets and Chandlers. Using the DuPage County mug book or a local history book you can see if their names are listed with biographies of their lives.

I discovered that many of the properties on the map did not contain any buildings or other structures. I am learning that many families and farmers owned wooded lots or empty fields for the practical matter of not only for investment in the land but also as a source of wood for keeping their homes warm in the winter and fields for the planting of hay and other crops. The Daleidens and the Schlicks used wood burning stoves for many decades to heat their homes and cook their meals. The Mather Family members owned seven lots per this map. Casper Schlick in furture years purchased some of the Mather Estate lots and properties just to the west of his property.

For more information on Michael Daleiden and his wife Susan Kurns see this post on the blog.