The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1911-02-24
LAND VALUES SHOW
BIG INCREASE
BIENNIAL REPORT OF STATE
BOARD OF TAX CON-
MIssiONERS.
Land Values Shown to Have Greatly
Increased, But Number OF Live
stock Has Decreased in Five Years
Taxable Property Figures OF 1905
and 1910 Are Compared.

| Olympia, Feb. 19.-The third bien
NAL report of the state board OF tax
commissioners, made public today
through transmission to the legisla
ture for use Monday. discloses won
derful advance in the material inter
ests of the state during the past fye
years.
The Improvement of lands is dis.
closed by the values, and, what is prob
ably more astonishing, the fact is re-
Evealed that in the state there are less
cattle and sheep than there were five
years ago.
This fact is doubtless due, say the
commissioners, to the closer cropping
of improved lands.
The report says:
Great Increase Shown.
| In 1905 the total assessed value OF
the taxable property in the state was
s32S,542,525.O0; it is now $9O6,247,-
944.OO, an increase in five years OF
$577, 705, 419.00
Five years ago the assessed value OF
all real property was $244,0S9. 600;
it is now $692,766, $4,000, an increase
of $448, ST., 085.0o.
| Steam railroads, then assessed at
26,789, $500, are now assessed at
ls1OO,157,754.0O, an increase of $685.
| O990O.
Five years ago there were 3,730,6
acres of improved land in the state.
There are now 6,173,688 acres of i'm
proved land within the state, valued at
$14O,175,243O0, or an average of $22.71
per acre. Improvements on these lands
are assessed at an average of $3.49 per
acre, making the average assessed
value of farm lands, including the i'm
provements thereon, $26.20 per acre.
2,443,O63 acres of raw land have been
placed in cultivation during the past
five years.
Town Lots Grow in Value.
In 1905 town and city lots, with i'm
provements, were assessed at $130,519,-
726.O0: this year they stand at $377,-
275,928.00, an increase of $246,756,-
10000.
In 1905 there were 18,747,997 acres
of land, improved and unimproved and
including timber lands, etc., within the
state, which, including Improvements,
were assessed at $114,120,144, or an
average of $500 per acre. There are
now 22,148,869 acres, assessed at $301,-
563,856, or an average of 1882 per
acre.
There are no means of ascertaining
the acreage of timbered land for 1905,
but from careful Investigations made
by the tax commission it was found to
be assessed at an average of $4.88 per
acre. There are now 5,628,666 acres
returned as timber land, assessed at
$76,47O,056, or an average of 1889 per
acre, an increase of 1871 per acre over
the assessment of 1905.
Big Personal Property Increase.
/ In 1905 the personal property value
was $57, 663,OO It is new $113,323, 1875,
an increase of $55, 662,195, and in this
connection it may be of interest to
note that in 1905 there were 406,569
head of cattle in the state, while at
the present time there are only 3O5, sos,
falling off of 101 .061 head during the
last five years.
Five years ago there were 525.770
sheep, while the returns for the pres.
ent year show only 359,407, or loss
of 1861 OF the cattle now returned
1876, zoos, or approximately s. per cent,
are mich cows. The reduction in the
number of cattle and sheep can be at
tributed to the fact that the additional
2,443,O63 acres of land put under the
plow during the last five years has re-
duced pasturage to that extent.
In 1905 there were 210,716 horses
within the state, having an average
value of $29.07. There are now 258.34O
horses, with an average value of 1882
OF these 154,251, or approximately so
per cent, are work horses. Then the
value of horses, cattle, sheep, hogs.
ETC., was $12,766,441; it is now $18,.
983, ABB.
Many More Pianos and Organs.
At that time there we're 26,179
pianos and organs, valued at $780,
$40; there are now 54,766, valued at
$4,651,033. Then all household goods,
office furniture, including jewelry, sill
yer plate, books, organs. pianos, sew
ing machines, ETC., were valued at $11.-
128,524. These articles are now as
sessed at $26.283,SS5.
Agricultural tools. implements, ma
chinery, harness. ETC., was assessed In
1905 at $1.748,130: now at $2,403. SIP.
Goods, wares and merchandise in 1905
was returned at $15,800.934, now at
$32,470,S24.
Manufactures were then valued at
3Q DOC AA6 now at e1a1H7 1Qn