Milling About

Another find at the Saxon Manor subdivision sale yesterday was this box of Missouri Sales Tax Mills.

With the current discussion of eliminating the penny from U.S. currency, it's hard to believe there was once a time when a 1/10 of a penny was needed for daily transactions.  The mill met the need of paying fraction of a cent sales taxes.  For example, if you bought a candy bar or a Coke for 10 cents, you would need to supply 1/10 of a cent in sales tax.  If you didn't have the mill, you would pay 11 cents and get 9 1/10 mills back (or 1 5/10 mill and 4 1/10 mills.  You get the idea.)
The Missouri mills came in various materials over the years.  Mine contained mostly plastic mills and a couple aluminum mills.  Unfortunately, it appears the plastic mills were left in the St. Louis heat one too many summers and have warped.  These probably date from the 1940's and '50s.

They came in what appears to be a metal eyeglasses case.  The paint is missing from the top and I can barely make out S&B NY.  A little internet sleuthing reveals it could be from the S&B Eyeglass factory in Lynbrook, New York which is still in business today.

Also in the container was a notary dog tag.  I'm not sure how this was used, but appears to identify the notary by name and license number.

The mills aren't worth much more than their original value, particularly in their bent condition.