Click Here to Return to Milestones Vol 7 No 3
With all of the recent controversy over the county budget and taxes, I thought it would be Interest to look back on the "good. old days," when prices were lower and government was a lot simpler than it is today.
I managed to locate the details of Beaver County's first budget, for the year 1800. It was printed in the Pittsburgh Gazette of 20 February 1801.
At the time there were only six townships in the county, but the county was physically larger than today, since it included what is now the southern part of Lawrence County. Tax collection for the year totaled $423.36. For some reason, no tax collections were listed for Hanover Township or North Beaver Township. Perhaps county officials had not yet had time to organize tax assessments or collections. In any case, collection was broke down as follows:
Sampson Warden, collector of First Moon Twp. $108.00
William Anderson, collector of South Beaver Twp. $199.00
Adam Wolfe, collector of Sewickley Twp. $ 59.00
John Bryan, collector of Second Moon Twp. $ 57.36
From this income, the county managed to pay a number of expenses, including: Commissioners. Clerk's time, assessing taxes, holding appeals. preparing lists of taxables, holding the general election, purchase of stationary, paying of the jailor and his assistants, the surveying of the line between Beaver and Butler Counties and $22.00 in bounty for Wolf Scalps. Total expenses were $33.66, leaving a surplus in the treasury of $92.70.
We certainly have come a long way since then!