Daily AncestorAssessor
An assessor was an official who valued land, houses and other property so that taxes could be set on it.
In the United States the word is used for a person appointed to find and fix the value of property for rates and taxes. In some other countries an assessor is instead an adviser who sits with a judge, the older meaning of the word.
The 1930 census instructions warned that the assessor's value, on which taxation is based, was usually below a home's market value, so it was not a safe guide to what a house would sell for.
As seen in a recordTown meeting records of the 1800s
Chosen assessors: Ira Coombs, Danl. Wetherbee
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Assessor." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/occupations/assessor. Last checked 2026-10-12.