Book excerpt: The South Precinct of Dutchess County grew from fewer than 50 families in 1740 to nearly 1400 in 1790. With over 200 pages devoted to never-before-published tax lists and farm lot maps, this volume brings together tax, tenant, militia, and census records of that part of Dutchess County that became Putnam County in 1812. The complete extant tax records include over 20,000 entries from 1741 to 1779. Based upon a meticulous comparison of the lists from year to year, the author augments the tax lists with suggested corrections for possible or apparent scribe errors. The every-name index includes over 1500 surnames and over 5000 individuals. This volume is a must-have for researchers interested in the history and peoples of this era.