Scope and Content: To encourage support of volunteer soldiers’ families during the Civil War, Congress, through Acts of 1861, c 9, s 12 (July 22, 1861) and Acts of 1861-62, c 4 (Dec. 24, 1861) established a system whereby a portion of a soldier’s pay could be transmitted to parties designated by him, generally wife or parent, as arranged by federally-appointed allotment commissioners working with the troops of each state. As implemented in Massachusetts by St 1862, c 62 (Mar. 11, 1862) and St 1863, c 58 (Mar. 3, 1863), the  state treasurer was authorized to distribute pay and allowances on behalf of soldiers through the treasurers of the appropriate city or town.
Arrangement: Chiefly arranged in batches numerically by regiment, and thereunder roughly chronologically, each payment is numbered (possibly by check) from 1-8001 in v. 1, and 1-5593 in v. 2.
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Scope and Content: From the time of the Massachusetts Bay Colony onward (e.g., Mass Recs 2: 244, May 10, 1648)), the treasurer of Massachusetts was required to submit a periodic (by the 1690s annual) statement of income and expenses to the General Court.
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically
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Scope and Content: Throughout the provincial period, Massachusetts towns were periodically assessed by the 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), dictated that all Massachusetts financial support of the war was thenceforth to be based on taxation only, with such funds 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 collection difficulties by dictating the methods by which the treasurer was to send his warrants for tax collection to county sheriffs, and town tax assessors were to be appointed and make their assessments. St 1785, c 50 (Feb. 20, 1786) further provided that each year three, five, seven or nine tax assessors were to be chosen by town vote (or failing that, appointed by town selectmen). Based on warrants from the Treasury for the amount assessed to the entire town for a particular tax, assessors were to determine the portion of the total tax due from each of the polls and estates of the town, and provide rate lists to the town collector,  constable,  or deputy sheriff of amounts to be collected. Assessors were then to return certificates to the Treasury listing the name(s) of the collector(s) and the amount assigned to each for collection.
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically/by tax
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Scope and Content: St 1780, c 25 (Mar. 7, 1781) required all Massachusetts auctioneers to post bond with the state treasurer, in the amount of one thousand pounds with two sureties. After periodic renewals, the act’s provisions were repealed by St 1789, c 59 (Mar. 9, 1790), which instituted certificates of approbation, such to be obtained by each auctioneer from town selectmen and submitted to the state treasurer for a license.  (Licensing was reduced to a municipal function per St 1795, c 8 (June 16, 1795).)  Series consist of signed and sealed bonds (Mar. 1781-Mar. 1790) stating the legal obligation to pay the amount of bond if the act’s requirements (including a one per cent semi-annual tax on auction proceeds) were not fulfilled.
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Restrictions: Some restrictions apply to this series. Staff member must be present at use
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Scope and Content: St 1762-63, c 24 (Feb. 24, 1763) established bonds for court clerks of the Province of the Massachusetts Bay to ensure responsible maintenance of court records; bonds of Superior Court clerks were to be delivered to the provincial treasurer. –St 1782, c 9 (July 3, 1782) established the Supreme Judicial Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and allowed the justices to appoint clerks, who were to be duly sworn.  St 1786, c 57 (Feb. 16, 1787) required such clerks to post bond to the state treasurer, to ensure the proper keeping and indexing of court records. –Per St 1796, c 95 (Mar. 11, 1797), clerks for the Court of Common Pleas were also appointed to service the records of the Supreme Judicial Court sessions in their respective counties.  They were to be appointed by that court and were required to post bond with the treasurer. –St 1811, c 8 (June 18, 1811) provided for appointment of court clerks by the governor and council, requiring them to post bond to the treasurer.  St 1830, c 129 (Mar. 19, 1831) again put clerk appointments with the justices of the Supreme Judicial Court, not specifying bonding requirements.
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Scope and Content: During the late provincial, Revolutionary, and early Constitutional periods, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts reimbursed physicians for services to  inmates of the almshouse maintained for the town of Boston by its overseers of the poor, so long as such inmates were certified as not being inhabitants of any town of the state (St 1766-67, c 17).  Accounts kept by the physicians were so certified by the almshouse master and chair of the town selectmen and then submitted for approval, in earlier years directly to the governor and council for drawing of a warrant for payment by the state treasurer, later to the Committee on Accounts of the General Court, which then forwarded them to the governor and council.
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