I've seen references to them and I am still learning about them but in the late 1850s there were an explosion of state transportation taxes on any means of carrying frieght; canals, railroad, steamboats, etc. So far I've only found northern states like Pennsylvania, New York, Rhode Island ect., imposing a tonnage tax on freight carried on through their states. Pennslyvania passed a enormous tax on transportation in 1860 and was finally declared unconstitutional in the early 1870s. Then later the Federal Government started taxing transporation not only on frieght but people in 1862. I'm still looking this stuff up. These taxes were added to the cost of products.
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David Upton