Ray Trucks to Charles W. Chesnutt, [January?] 1932
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LAKE COUNTY ABSTRACT CO.
RAY TRUCKS, ATTORNEY-AT-LAW, MANAGER
BALDWIN, MICHIGAN1
ABSTRACTS OF TITLE
TITLE INSURANCE
TAX PAYMENT SERVICE
MEMBER
AMERICAN TITLE ASSN.
MICHIGAN TITLE ASSN.
Dear Property Owner:
Enclosed herewith you will find the official tax receipt, or receipts, issued in your name for the taxes you have just paid.2 This is also to acknowledge payment of our $1.00 per year service fee, charged for each description, for which I thank you.
I appreciate your co-operation and trust to justify your confidence by prompt and efficient service in future. Taxes for year 1932 will be due Dec. 1, 1932, at which time we will mail you statements of same. Should you move or change your address in the meantime, be sure to fill out and mail me the enclosed card, which requires no postage, as we must have your correct address in order to keep you informed of any matters of importance which may arise concerning your property here.
It is very important that taxes be paid as soon as possible after they become due to avoid payment of penalties, or the possibility of loss through sale for delinquent taxes. You will be performing a good service for any other owner of property here whom you know, by reminding them that 1931 taxes are now past due, and if they have not received a statement thereof, to write us at once.
Very truly yours, Ray TrucksCorrespondent: Ray Trucks (1884–1965) was a White lawyer in Baldwin, Michigan, who owned Lake County Abstract Co., the only law and real-estate charter firm in town. He also sold and managed real estate and held public office as Prosecuting Attorney (1914–1920) and Probate Judge (1921–1925) for Lake County, which included the Idlewild community where the Chesnutts had a summer home.
1. Baldwin, Michigan, is a village that serves as the county seat of Lake County, less than four miles from Idlewild, Michigan, where the Chesnutts bought land in 1924 and built their summer cottage. In 1930, about five hundred people lived in Baldwin, but it had a railroad station, a weekly newspaper, and amenities for tourists from the surrounding area. [back]
2. Chesnutt's handwritten note on Ray Trucks's November 27, 1931, reminder about taxes for 1931 indicates that Chesnutt paid the property taxes for his summer home on Lake Idlewild on January 2, 1932, making it likely that Trucks' receipt was issued within the month. [back]
