Scope and Content: Throughout the provincial period, Massachusetts towns were periodically assessed by the state treasury with taxes for the defraying of public charges and support of the government. This practice increased in importance and frequency during the Revolutionary War, as individual colonies became largely responsible for financial support of the war effort. Resolves 1777-78, c 398 (Oct. 9, 1777), required that all Massachusetts financial support of the war was thenceforth to be based on taxation only, with such funds were to be paid punctually into the Treasury. After war’s end in 1783,  the state struggled to collect taxes to pay off accumulated debt.  St 1785, c 46 (Feb. 16, 1786) attempted to address the state’s collection difficulties by dictating the methods by which town tax collectors were to be appointed, perform their duties, and treated if found remiss, and St 1785, c 70, (Mar. 16, 1786), further clarified these points, stating that unless a town preferred to leave tax collection in the hands of its constable, its selectmen or assessors were to annually appoint collectors to perform this duty. Based on warrants from the state treasurer’s office specifying the total sum due from the town for a specific tax, rate lists were produced by assessors specifying the amounts to be collected from each of the polls and estates of the town. The duty of the collectors was to collect the amounts provided in these rate lists, and to return the collections to the Treasury. –During this early post-war period, problems with delinquent and dishonest collectors began to emerge. Resolves 1784, Oct Sess,  c 102 (Nov. 12, 1784), addressed concerns pertaining to delinquent sheriffs and collectors who were holding aside public funds for their own use, directing the state treasurer to compel them to an immediate settlement. Resolves 1784, Oct Sess,  c 103, Nov. 13, 1784, similarly addressed concerns about collectors who were holding back collected specie, substituting in their returns lower-valued public securities and/or certificates. Thus by the resolve all collectors were to swear an oath before a justice of the peace upon returning any further securities or certificates, attesting to the fact that all were received from the persons named in the collector’s rate list (full text of oath included in resolve). These oaths, or a certificate attesting to their administration, were then submitted to the sheriff along with collections for transmittal to the Treasury, or sworn before the Treasurer if the collector submitted payments directly.
Arrangement: In two subseries: (1) Returns (2) Oaths;  Arranged within each subseries chronologically by tax
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