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the claim

There was no tax before 1913 in the United States

the verdict
REFUTED
the evidence says no
Recorded sources
0 sources for · 5 against

Counts group repeated records of the same source within each side. They do not measure evidence strength or source independence.

The claim that there was no tax before 1913 in the United States is false. Americans paid various forms of taxes, including tariffs, property taxes, excise taxes, and temporary income taxes, throughout U.S. history long before the 16th Amendment was ratified.

How claims like this are judged

Judged against reference works: claims of this kind are settled by the historical reference record, not journal abstracts.

Evidence against · 5
Wikipedia: History of taxation in the United States
Recorded source metadata

Wikipedia: History of taxation in the United States. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_taxation_in_the_United_States

Reference article covering this claim directly

2 recorded entries grouped as this source

Additional records of the same source are shown below. They are not counted as additional sources.

en.wikipedia.org: History of taxation in the United States
Recorded source metadata

en.wikipedia.org: History of taxation in the United States. en.wikipedia.org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_taxation_in_the_United_States

The U.S. collected tariffs, excise taxes, property taxes, and temporary income taxes before 1913.

See more details
More against · 4
politifact.com: Modern income tax structure born in 1913, but Americans paid ...
Recorded source metadata

politifact.com: Modern income tax structure born in 1913, but Americans paid .... politifact.com. https://politifact.com/factchecks/2020/jan/21/facebook-posts/modern-income-tax-structure-born-1913-americans-pa/

Fact-checker ruling: reviewed

api.politifact.com: PolitiFact | Ron Paul says federal income tax rate was 0 percent until 1913
Recorded source metadata

api.politifact.com: PolitiFact | Ron Paul says federal income tax rate was 0 percent until 1913. api.politifact.com. https://api.politifact.com/factchecks/2012/jan/31/ron-paul/ron-paul-says-federal-income-tax-rate-was-0-percen/

Fact-checker ruling: reviewed

en.wikipedia.org: Legal history of income tax in the United States
Recorded source metadata

en.wikipedia.org: Legal history of income tax in the United States. en.wikipedia.org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_income_tax_(legal_history)

Taxation of income and other taxes have been practiced in the U.S. since colonial times.

archives.gov: 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Federal Income Tax ...
Recorded source metadata

archives.gov: 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Federal Income Tax .... archives.gov. https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/16th-amendment

The U.S. imposed a federal income tax in 1861, well before the 16th Amendment in 1913.

The paper trail · every fact has a biography
first checked31 Jul 2026
judged → REFUTED · 031 Jul 2026
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