Scope and Content: The Troy and Greenfield Railroad Company was incorporated by St 1848, c 307 to build a railroad eastward from the termination of the Vermont and Massachusetts Railroad near Troy, New York to unite with the Connecticut River Railroad near Greenfield, Massachusetts.  Establishing this line required tunneling through the Hoosac Mountain.  The project was to have been completed in seven years, but the company was placed into receivership by St 1854, c 226.  Commissioners of a sinking fund, including the state treasurer and auditor and the treasurer of the company, were appointed for the investment, care, and management of the company’s monies.  A six-year extension was granted for completing the railroad but because of setbacks in construction of the tunnel, the project was not finished until 1876.  The property, known as the Troy and Greenfield Railroad and Hoosac Tunnel (St 1862, c 156), was consolidated with that of the Fitchburg Railroad Company (St 1887, c 52), although the Troy and Greenfield Railroad Company itself continued in existence to 1890.
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically
Notes: Has spine title: Stock ledger
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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: 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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Scope and Content: The state treasurer was authorized by the legislature to issue scrip or certificates of debt in the name of the Commonwealth to aid the construction of various railroads throughout Massachusetts.  Transcript of payment of interest was created by the treasurer from information regarding payments on such debt submitted by the treasurers of the Andover and Haverhill Railroad Corporation (St 1837, c 188) and the Norwich and Worcester Railroad Company (St 1837, c 84) .
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically
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Scope and Content: The treasurer and receiver-general of Massachusetts is the sole receiver, custodian, and payer of state funds.  Treasurer’s incoming correspondence (this series) and: Treasurer’s outgoing correspondence ((M-Ar)2269X) document the activities of the Commonwealth’s first eleven treasurers; some records predate the 1780 Constitution, but most are from the terms of treasurers Ivers, Hodgdon, and Davis (1782-1797)
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically
Restrictions: Some restrictions apply to this series. Staff member must be present at use
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Scope and Content: The treasurer and receiver-general of Massachusetts is the sole receiver, custodian, and payer of state funds.  Treasurer’s incoming correspondence ((M-Ar)1804X) and: Treasurer’s outgoing correspondence (this series, in letterbook format) document the activities of the Commonwealth’s first eleven treasurers; some records predate the 1780 Constitution, but most are from the terms of treasurers Ivers, Hodgdon, and Davis (1782-1797)
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically
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Scope and Content: HISTORICAL NOTE: The post-Revolutionary Massachusetts legislature endeavored to collect taxes levied to pay war debt and other state expenses, particularly burdening farmers in the western part of the state.  Angered by foreclosures and imprisonment imposed for tax delinquency and not receiving satisfaction for grievance petitions filed with the legislature, the protesting farmers rioted and closed courthouses under the leadership of Revolutionary veteran Daniel Shays.  The state militia was called out to suppress Shays’ Rebellion in Sept. 1786, in Jan. 1787 a state army was formed for the purpose, and by February the insurgents were defeated. –The state treasury did not have sufficient funds for the quartermaster general and commissary general to supply the army formed to fight the rebellion.  In Jan. 1787, the legislature not being in session to authorize loans or to otherwise secure funds, a group of voluntary contributors met on the date the state army was established (Jan. 4) and pledged monies for the cause. (For initial list of subscribers see: Massachusetts. Office of the Secretary of State. Massachusetts archives collection ((M-Ar)45X), v. 189, p. 64-66.)  St 1786, c 50 (Feb. 6, 1787) authorized the borrowing of 40,000 pounds and the issuing of notes to reimburse the contributors at 6% interest.  Notes dated beginning Mar. 1 , 1787 were repaid in three dividends (25% July 1787, 10% Feb. 1788, 20% July 1788), with the total eligible for repayment in Jan. 1789.
Restrictions: Some restrictions apply to this series. Staff member must be present at use
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