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Original 1799 United States federal distilled-spirits excise certificate from Survey No. III of the District of Maryland, documenting duties on a cask containing 30 gallons of brandy.
Dated October 22, 1799, the partly printed certificate is completed in manuscript and signed at lower right by Colonel William Richardson, Inspector of the Revenue for Maryland’s Third Survey. Richardson was a Revolutionary War officer later appointed by President George Washington to this federal revenue post.
The document survives from the early federal system for taxing distilled spirits established during the 1790s, the same revenue structure whose enforcement produced the Whiskey Rebellion. It is a particularly tangible artifact of federal taxation during the first decade of the constitutional government.
Details
Date: October 22, 1799
Place: District of Maryland
Survey: No. III
Document Type: Federal distilled-spirits excise certificate
Spirit: Brandy
Quantity: 30 gallons
Certificate Number: 309
Inspector: Colonel William Richardson
Format: Partly printed document completed in manuscript
Seal: Embossed revenue seal at upper left
Dimensions: approximately 8 × 4 1/2 inches
Additional Details
The printed certificate states that the duties on the cask had been secured according to law and records the contents, quantity, proof notation, identifying numbers, and date in manuscript.
William Richardson served as a Continental Army officer during the American Revolution and subsequently held public office in Maryland. In 1792 he was appointed Inspector of the Revenue for Survey No. III of the District of Maryland, the office represented by this certificate.
The 1799 date is especially significant, placing the document within the final years of the original federal distilled-spirits excise system created in 1791.
Condition
Good condition for a working government document dating to 1799. Overall age toning with substantial historical staining, scattered spotting, handling wear, and original horizontal and vertical folds. Small edge losses, short tears, and areas of creasing are present. Reverse shows prominent staining corresponding with the front. Embossed seal remains visible. Printed text, manuscript entries, date, and inspector’s signature remain clear and readily legible.
Please review photographs closely, which form an important part of the condition description.
Subject
William Richardson; Maryland; federal excise tax; brandy; distilled spirits; early United States government; Revolutionary War officer
Topic
18th-century American documents; Whiskey Rebellion era; federal taxation; early American revenue; Maryland history
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