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Income Tax Facts for the Weary

taxes_apr_15_artIf you feel that preparing your taxes or writing a check to the U.S. government ranks up there with getting a root canal, then read on. You might enjoy some of these interesting income tax facts:

  • When income tax made its appearance during the Civil War, it was considered a temporary war measure! (However, it remerged in 1913 after the 16th amendement of the Constitution was adopted).
  • The tax rate during the early 1900s was only 1 percent of net income over $3,000. By World War I, though, the maximum tax had soared to 77%
  • At one point, the government hired Donald Duck to encourage people to pay their taxes. The famed cartoon character appeared in the short film, The New Spirit.
  • An effort to sell wallets through Woolworths and other department stores ended up causing a Social Security card nightmare in 1943. The wallet manufacturer E. H. Ferree Company wanted to demonstrate how a Social Security card would fit into its wallets, so the company created a sample card, with an employee's Social Security number donned on it. Even though the card sample was half the size of a real Social Security card, and was written in red, many Americans confused this sample card to be their own, after they purchased the wallets. The result: More than 40,000 people reported using the sample card number when they filed their taxes.
At Farmers' Almanac, we would love to know how you put April 15th behind you.
Tags: April 15, income tax, Tax Excuses, Tax facts