Francis King on Quaker Resistance to Confederate War Taxes

Those of you who own copies of the book War Tax Resistance, put out by the War Resisters League in 2003, will want to download a copy of the 2011 supplement that brings the information in the guide up-to-date.


Francis T. King sent a letter to the Friends’ Review in November to let them know how things were going with Quakers on the other side of the lines in the American Civil War. Excerpt:

Our Yearly Meeting convened at the usual time and place [] John B. Crenshaw, of Baltimore Yearly Meeting, (Richmond, Va.,) was in attendance. It was thought best to draft Epistles to all the Yearly Meetings, though we received none. All of the Quarters were represented but two, Eastern (mostly within the Federal lines), and Lost Creek (East Tennessee); two Friends were present from the former, but not as Representatives. The attendance was small, and it was particularly noticeable that very few young men were present, many of them having been taken to camp, under the conscription act; towards many of them, however, I am glad to learn that much respect is shown. Some few have paid the exemption tax and have been released, but the Meeting for Sufferings does not sanction this mode of exemption.