This article was published in the Summer 2026 issue of the Wake Genealogy Watch newsletter. Volume 9, Issue 4, p7. Do you have an ancestor who you suspect might have been a Loyalist? They would be alive in the 1775-1783 timeframe in your tree. Have you noticed some clues that have you wondering? - CD If your ancestor showed no obvious signs of being a Patriot, did they show any inclination to the opposite? Maybe they signed an association paper to the British cause, or they left town abruptly.  Is there evidence that their property was confiscated or that they were prosecuted for treason (or worse!) by the new American government?  Those wishing to remain British subjects called themselves Loyalists. The Patriot rebels derisively called them Tories. Loyalist support was especially strong in parts of the southern colonies, including South Carolina, Georgia, and the North Carolina backcountry. The Loyalists’ motives were many.  Southern plantation owners and merchants with ...

There is a list of early North Carolina Tax Records online at NCDigital . These records cover the Colonial and Revolutionary timeframe and include 34 files from fifteen early counties. The description of the list reads as follows:   “"The Tax Lists and Records digital collection features tax records from the holdings of the State Archives of North Carolina drawn from General Assembly, Treasurer & Comptroller, and Secretary of State records. The bulk of the records are from the Colonial and Revolutionary War eras, but some lists date from as late as 1809. Each set of tax records includes slightly different information. References to “polls” below relate to poll taxes, a tax of a fixed amount levied on adult males, female heads of households, and enslaved people.”   The Tax List for 1815 Wake County is included and makes for a fascinating browse if you are researching the county in the early days. I confess to losing more than a couple afternoons to this list as I trie...