The Boston Tea Party:

Taking a Stand for Our Independence

Ellie Klumb

Junior Division

Historical Paper

2484 Words

The purpose of conducting the Boston Tea Party was to demand reasonable and

fair rights from the British Parliament. The British Parliament was in great debt from the

French and Indian War, and taxed the American colonists on tea in order to repay the

vast debt. The taxation without representation angered the colonists and they organized

secret meetings so that they could protest against the taxations. Over 5,000 brave men,

within the Sons of Liberty, participated in the event that provoked the Revolutionary

War. The Boston Tea Party of 1773 was a magnificent stand that led to the United

States’ victory in the American Revolution, giving our country freedom and

independence. The Boston Tea Party was a unified community of people who took a

stand and rewarded our precious country with the freedom from the British Government

that it deserved.

British Parliament and the Vast Debt

Although the Boston Tea Party was not planned and executed until 1773, it

began with the end of the French and Indian War; a conflict over territory between Great

Britain and France. Britain finished the war with a triumphant victory, but the French 1 2

and Indian War was expensive and the British were in debt afterwards. They eventually

chose to tax the American colonists to repay their enormous debt. 3

In 1764, one year after the French and Indian War, the British Parliament passed

the Sugar Act - a sixpence levy on imported sugar and molasses. The colonists disliked

1 "Tea, Taxes, and the American Revolution," video file, 10:54, Khan Academy, accessed December 6, 2016, https://www.khanacademy.org/ 2 "Boston Tea Party, the Key Event for the Revolutionary War," Boston Tea Party Historical Society, accessed December 6, 2016, http://www.boston-tea-party.org/essays/essay6.html. 3 Michelle Getchell, "The Boston Tea Party," Khan Academy, accessed December 6, 2016, https://www.khanacademy.org/

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paying the tax and disliked being taxed without representation because the colonists

were not represented in the British Parliament. They were under the control of the 4

British and had no legal objection to the tax. The Sugar Act was one of the first and

most outrageous acts that led to protests, and eventually to the Boston Tea Party.

Later in the spring, the British passed the Quartering Act, holding colonists

responsible for housing any soldiers that needed shelter. The colonists were furious 5

and felt the British Parliament were just trying to show off the power they held over the

colonists. 6

The British Parliament Stamps Another Act

In 1765, the British Parliament passed the Stamp Act, and mandated taxes upon

all printed paper goods bought in the colonies (See Appendix A). Those accused of

violating the Stamp Act would be prosecuted. The British felt justified with their actions, 7

and knew that the benefits from the Stamp Act would help to repay their ongoing debt. 8

The British Parliament felt the colonists deserved to pay for it and that the British were

protecting them. The colonists were only getting angrier at the British Parliament and

riots occurred as a result. There were many advertisements and illustrations that were 9

used to display their anger with Great Britain (See Appendix B).

4 Benjamin L. Carp, Defiance of the Patriots: The Boston Tea Party and the Making of America (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2010). 5 Admin, "The Quartering Act of 1765," History is Fun, last modified March 26, 2015, accessed January 2, 2017, http://www.historyisfun.org/blog/quartering-act-of-1765/. 6 History.com Staff, "Parliament Passes the Quartering Act," History.com, last modified 2009, accessed January 3, 2017, http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/parliament-passes-the-quartering-act. 7 William Bradford, "Expiring: In Hopes of a Resurrection to Life Again," The Pennsylvania Journal and Weekly Advertiser, October 31, 1765. 8 "Tea, Taxes," video file. 9 Francis S. Drake, Tea Leaves (Boston: Smith & Porter, Printers, 1884), digital file.

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“The Stamp Act imposed on the colonies by the Parliament of Great Britain

is an ill-judged measure. Parliament has no right to put its hands into our pockets

without our consent.”

George Washington, 1765 10

The colonists begged for the Stamp Act to be repealed and began again

boycotting paper goods. The British weren’t receiving much of a profit after the 11

boycotts and the Stamp Act was repealed. The continuous boycotts ended shortly 12

after.

A Desolate Wilderness

The colonists were feeling quite justified until Charles Townshend, a British

politician, passed the Townshend Acts. This taxed all glass, lead, paint, paper and tea

imported, and would hopefully defray imperial expenses in the colonies. While the 13

British Parliament felt justified, the colonists opposed the outrageous acts of the British.

“I sincerely believe they [the British Parliament] intend to carry out their

threats, which are to make the town a desolate wilderness.”

John Andrews, May 1774 14

10 AZ Quotes, accessed January 17, 2017, http://www.azquotes.com/quote/826439. 11 Archibald Hinshelwood to Joshua Mauger, August 19, 1765, Gilder Lehrman Collection. 12 Michelle Getchell, "The Townshend Acts and the Committees of Correspondence," Khan Academy, accessed December 6, 2016, https://www.khanacademy.org/ 13 Providence Gazette (Boston), January 11, 1771. 14 Letter by Andrews.

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The Townshend Acts were a series of five acts, and the most common were the

Revenue Act and the Indemnity Act. The Revenue Act placed the cruel taxes on the

colonists, and the Indemnity Act removed taxes on British East India Company tea, 15

which had been used as a profit for the British. 16

A Massacre with a Much Greater Effect

After the colonists began boycotting again, the British weren’t making any profit.

The British repealed the Townshend Acts in April of 1770, besides the tax on tea, in a

small attempt to continue taxes. As British troops came to the colonies to collect the 17

taxes owed, the arrival of troops provoked conflict between the citizens and the soldiers.

On March 5, 1770, a group of soldiers opened fire after an argument that later 18

became known as the Boston Massacre, the smallest massacre known to mankind. 19

The acts that lead up to this were absurd, but the Boston Massacre was just outrageous

and uncalled for.

Only ⅓ of the colonists were heavily against the amount of control the British

had, and ⅓ of the colonists were loyal to Great Britain and their views. The rest of the 20

15 "Townshend Acts," Land of the Brave, accessed January 7, 2017, https://www.landofthebrave.info/townshend-acts.htm. 16 "Townshend Acts," Land of the Brave. 17 "Townshend Acts," Land of the Brave. 18 Ibis Communications, "The Boston Tea Party, 1773," Eye Witness to History, last modified 2002, accessed November 4, 2016, http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/teaparty.htm. 19 History.com Staff, "The Boston Tea Party," History.com, last modified 2009, accessed December 29, 2016, http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-boston-tea-party. 20 Historic Tours of America, "Boston Tea Party Facts," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience, accessed December 18, 2016, https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/boston-tea-party-facts.

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colonists remained neutral. There was almost an equal amount of Patriots and 21

Loyalists within the colonies, so as you can see colonial America was very divided.

The Committees of Correspondence Takes Action

In 1772, the Committees of Correspondence were created by Samuel Adams. 22

The purpose of creating these Committees were to have an easy way to communicate

with other colonies, to ensure all other colonies were being informed. This benefited 23

the colonies in many ways and helped them to work better to understand each other

and feel more unity.

The colonists were still being taxed for tea imported in and the British Parliament

saw the tea taxations as a way out of their collapsing economy. One of their economy’s

key components, the British East India Tea Company, was struggling, so the British

Parliament passed the 1773 Tea Act. It gave the British East India Tea Company a 24

lower tax that forced the colonists to purchase from them, and it wasn't fair to other tea

companies. The Tea Act created a monopoly that was unfair to the American tea 25

merchants. The direct sale of tea by agents of the East India Company to the colonies

reduced business for tea merchants. 26

The British government knew the Tea Act would ruffle some feathers, but they

didn't envision the stir it would cause. Many colonists wanted the act repealed 27

21 Historic Tours of America, "Boston Tea Party," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience. 22 "Timeline of Events Preceding the Boston Tea Party," Boston Tea Party Historical Society, accessed January 2, 2017, http://www.boston-tea-party.org/timeline.html. 23 Wesley S. Griswold, The Night the Revolution Began (Brattleboro: Stephen Green Press, 1972). 24 "Timeline of Events," Boston Tea Party Historical Society. 25 "Timeline of Events," Boston Tea Party Historical Society. 26 Historic Tours of America, "The Tea Act," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience, accessed March 26, 2017, https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/the-tea-act. 27 Murray N. Rothbard, Advance to Revolution, vol. 3, Conceived in Liberty, Conceived in Liberty (New Rochelle: Arlington House Publishers, 1976).

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because it was only passed to benefit Great Britain. The colonists were tired of the 28

British and knew that they needed to approach this another way.

The colonists felt they had to do something drastic to capture the attention of the

British government and make them listen. Many long and tiring meetings of the Sons of

Liberty, a secret society, took place in the process of planning the Boston Tea Party

which held in the Old South Church (See Appendix C). The Sons of Liberty was a 29

society created by Samuel Adams and John Hancock that was responsible for the

Boston Tea Party. Although women were not allowed to attend the secret meetings,

there were about 5,000 men in attendance. At these meetings, the concerned 30

colonists discussed what they were going to do about the tea being brought into the

colonies from London, and what measures they’d have to take to prevent the tea from

landing. In November, three ships arrived carrying tea, and the ships stayed put, no 31

matter what the colonists said. The first ship, the Dartmouth, arrived at the Boston Port

on November 29th. The British Parliament had been so stubborn with taxing the

colonists, there was no way the ships would let the colonists off easy and simply leave.

The colonists retaliated by planning very carefully what they were to do during so many

extensive meetings of the Sons of Liberty. 32

28 Drake, Tea Leaves. 29 F. J. Garrison, "The Old South Church and the Boston Tea Party," The Woman's Journal (Boston), December 9, 1893, accessed November 4, 2016, http://gerritsen.chadwyck.com/ 30 Leon Poindexter, telephone interview by the author, North America, December 5, 2016. 31 George Hewes, "Boston Tea Party: Eyewitness Account by a Participant," The History Place, accessed December 19, 2016, http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/revolution/teaparty.htm. 32 Virginia Gazette, January 11, 1773, http://infoweb.newsbank.com/

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The Sons of Liberty Take A Stand: The Boston Tea Party On the fateful night of December 16th, 1773, the colonists were ready to put their

plan into action. They knew that after the night of the 16th, things would be different.

They didn’t know how different things would be, all they did know was that they had a

very abstract plan, and they were going to be overthrowing a lot of tea. They were 33

going to toss the British East India Tea Company tea that was aboard the ships the

Dartmouth, the Beaver, and the Eleanor. The colonists disguised themselves as 34

American Indians so their true identities wouldn’t be known, and they wore gigantic

feathered headdresses and paint among their face, carrying guns for protection. Most 35

of the colonists who took part in the Boston Tea Party were never known of and some

were as young as 14 years old. 36

When the Sons of Liberty arrived at the Boston port, they got ready to overthrow

the British East India Tea Company tea. Samuel Adams, the main instigator, gave the

signal for action. When the signal was given, the colonists split up evenly among the 37

three ships. They spent three laborious hours overthrowing tea, feeling their muscles

ache from the pain of strenuous and heavy lifting (See Appendix D). Aboard the ships,

the colonists solely touched the tea, not even the locks on the crates. Most of the 38

Boston Tea Partiers were loyal and stuck to the plan, but others betrayed the Sons of

33 Journal of Social History, Summer 2012. 34 "The Boston Tea Party," Teaching History, June 2006, sec. 123. 35 Pyle, Howard, “The Boston Tea Party,” Digital Public Library of America, http://dp.la/item/b83cb5cff173d2486dc00004820f97ed 36 Michael Burgan, The Boston Tea Party: We the People (Minneapolis: Compass Point Books, 2001), digital file. 37 Burgan, The Boston. 38 "Boston Tea Party," Boston Tea Party Historical Society.

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Liberty. Some of the Tea Partiers were stuffing some tea into their pockets. Most of 39

those unloyal Tea Partiers were caught and punished.

Once all of the tea aboard the ships were overthrown, the colonists noticed the

tea crates floating in the port, starting to pile up and realized that if the British

government really wanted to, they could salvage the tea. To solve this, the colonists 40

jumped into boats and smashed the crates of tea with axes and oars until they were 41

torn apart and scattered into the Boston port. Afterwards, the Tea Partiers dumped any

and all excess tea out from their shoes and any other crevices.

“This is the most magnificent Movement of all. This Destruction of the Tea

is so bold, so daring, so firm, so intrepid, and so inflexible, and it must have so

important Consequences and so lasting, that I cannot but consider it as an

Epocha in History.”

John Adams, December 17, 1773 42

Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty

The most well-known organizer and leader of the Boston Tea Party was a

politician named Samuel Adams who was known for his strong resentment of the

Parliament's taxes. He was a Boston Patriot who was credited as the Boston Tea 43

39 Hewes, "Boston Tea Party," The History Place. 40 Hewes, "Boston Tea Party," The History Place. 41 Historic Tours of America, "The Aftermath," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience, accessed January 16, 2017, https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/the-aftermath. 42 Historic Tours of America, "The Aftermath," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience. 43 Historic Tours of America, "Samuel Adams (1722-1803)," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience, accessed December 20, 2016, https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/samuel-adams.

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Party Founder, and the creator of the Sons of Liberty and the Committees of 44

Correspondence.

“All might be free if they valued freedom, and defended it as they ought.”

Samuel Adams, 1776 45

The Sons of Liberty were rebelling against the Parliament, and the Boston Tea

Party was the big gesture, sure to catch the attention of the British. The Sons of 46

Liberty were not specifically looking to reach an agreement, they merely wanted their

freedom from Great Britain and their rules. John Dickinson, a US Founding Father,

wrote the Olive Branch Petition in 1775 in hopes of reconciliation between the colonies

and Britain. King George III refused to abide by the petition on September 1st, 1775. 47 48

Dickinson was one of the handful that wanted the colonies and Britain to reconcile, but

the Sons of Liberty only wanted independence.

The Immediate Aftermath

The news of the Boston Tea Party arrived with a great shock. The news was

received in England with astonishment and Great Britain could not believe that the

colonists took a stand in the way that they did. The Boston Tea Party was not known by

that name until the 1820s. At the time, it had been known by much less creative 49

44 Historic Tours of America, "Samuel Adams," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience. 45 "Freedom, Liberty, and Rights," Samuel Adams Heritage Society, accessed March 28, 2017, http://www.samuel-adams-heritage.com/quotes/freedom-liberty.html. 46 Poindexter, telephone interview by the author. 47 History.com Staff, "Congress Adopts Olive Branch Petition," History.com, last modified 2009, accessed March 27, 2017, http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/congress-adopts-olive-branch-petition. 48 History.com Staff, "Congress Adopts," History.com. 49 W. M. Ireland and Chase Andrawn, "Postscript to the Pennsylvania Gazette," Pennsylvania Gazette, 1876, 1.

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names, such as The Destruction of the Tea and A Midnight Raid. The colonists were 50

proud of their courage to stand up to the British, even though the Boston port reeked of

the 92,000 pounds of tea dumped for many weeks following. Though the colonists 51

were proud of their actions, there was only one person, Francis Akeley, caught and

punished for the matter. Most Tea Partiers weren’t know of until almost 50 years later.

The British response was to impose more acts, such as the Coercive Act of

1774. It was a series of laws that enacted limits on the American colonies and shut the 52

Boston port down, preventing entrance and exportation of any merchandise. The

Coercive Acts fined Boston for the tea that had been overthrown and until the debt was

repaid, the Boston port was to stay closed. The British used this to keep the colonists 53

in line.

“Once vigorous measures appear to be the only means left of bringing the

Americans to a due submission to the mother country, the colonies will submit.”

King George III, August 23, 1775 54

Benjamin Franklin offered to cover the cost of the tea, in exchange for the port to

be reopened, but the British Parliament declined the generous offer. The passing of 55

the Coercive Acts were only to benefit the British and strengthen control over

50 Ireland and Andrawn, "Postscript to the Pennsylvania," 1. 51 Historic Tours of America, "The Aftermath," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience. 52 History.com Staff, "The Boston," History.com. 53 Boston Committee of Correspondence, “Boston, May 12, 1774,” Digital Public Library of America, http://dp.la/item/6824acab5e03c6512e19859385da0a45. 54 "George III's Quotes," QuotationOf.com, accessed February 12, 2017, http://www.quotationof.com 55 Historic Tours of America, "Boston Tea Party," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience.

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Massachusetts by taking power away from the colonists and transferring it over to the

British. The Coercive Acts were outrageous and had been provoked by the destruction

of the tea, just a few months earlier.

“Among the causes which led to the American Revolution, the one most

prominent in the poplar judgement is the “tax on tea” imposed by Great Britain

on her American colonies.”

Francis Drake, 1884 56

Conclusion: The Significance of the Boston Tea Party

The Boston Tea Party had short term effects such as the Coercive Acts and the 57

closing of the Boston port, but the revolution was a long term effect that started only a

year and a half later. The American Revolution was a war between the original 13

colonies and Great Britain, and a result of the overthrow of the tea and the British 58

Parliament’s authority over the colonies. The Boston Tea Party has given America our

independence. When we celebrated our victory, we were also celebrating our

independence and freedom from Great Britain. The Tea Partiers worked hard to take a 59

stand and voice an opinion, through boycotts, riots, and finally, the Boston Tea Party.

There was a major social impact on the colonists who were affected by the

outrageous laws of the British Parliament. They realized that good could eventually

56 Drake, Tea Leaves, vi. 57 Julia Ward Howe, "The Boston Tea-Party," The Women's Journal (Boston), December 16, 1893, accessed November 4, 2016, http://gerritsen.chadwyck.com/ 58 Historic Tours of America, "The Aftermath," Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience. 59 Getchell, "The Boston," Khan Academy.

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come from your opinions and hiding them won’t help you. The Boston Tea Party had a

political impact and the colonists became much more independent and strong since the

British Parliament had pushed them around. The British did not want the colonists to

form their own democratic government, for the British power would be gone, but the

colonists were much stronger without the British and formed a government. They

overcame the opposition of the British Parliament to make changes for the colonists. If it

weren’t for the Boston Tea Party, the revolution would’ve occurred much later on and

our beautiful country may not be as independent as it is now.

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Appendix A

Regis, George. Anno Quinto Georgii III. Regis. London, 1765.

I learned from this primary source that the Stamp Act was imposed by the British

government and went into action on the first of November. Anyone who was accused of

violating the Stamp Act, could and would be prosecuted. The Stamp Act was

passed on March 22, 1765 and angered all the colonists. This helped me to see what

the British were thinking when this act was passed.

13

Appendix B

Tarred and Feathered and Forced to Drink Tea. 1774. Illustration.

This scan of a political cartoon helped me to understand many things

about the British view on the events prior to and of the Boston Tea Party. I

learned that the British had felt and labeled the Bostonians as rebellious people

and that they were very angry after the Boston Tea Party. The British were

outraged that the colonists had reacted this way and had taken such measures. I

have learned a little bit more about the British point of view.

14

Appendix C

“Boston, December 1, 1773. At a meeting of the people of Boston and the

neighboring towns at Faneuil-Hall,” Digital Public Library of America,

http://dp.la/item/ac7cb0395f7e44b45b459a456c7bf392.

This scan of meeting report helped me to see that the meetings and

planning of the Boston Tea Party was hectic and that the landing of the East

India Tea Company tea angered the colonists. Using the scan of the meeting

report, I not only saw how extensive the meetings were, but how important they

were to the Boston Tea Party. Without these meetings, the Tea Party would not

have been as successful and impactful as it was.

15

Appendix D

“Americans throwing the Cargoes of the Tea Ships into the River, at Boston,” in

Richard Johnson, The History of North America… (London, 1789), opposite p.

58, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

This image helped me incredibly to understand and visualize the images

of the Tea Partiers. This illustration helped me to see what the Boston Port

looked like as the colonists were overthrowing the crates of tea. This was helpful

to me when I was reaching the Boston Tea Party because not only was I

gathering the facts, but I needed to understand what the Boston Tea Party was

about and this illustration helped me to do that.

16

Annotated Bibliography

Primary Sources

Andrews, John. Letter, May 1774. Accessed December 30, 2016.

http://www.smithsoniansource.org/display/primarysource/viewdetails.aspx?TopicI

d=&PrimarySourceId=1005.

This excerpt from a letter from Andrews to his brother-in-law helped me to see

that the colonists had believed that the British would turn their towns into a

desolate wilderness. The colonists believed that the British would carry out

everything they said they’d intended and this letter helped me to understand

some of the feelings of the colonists.

Bradford, William. “Expiring: In Hopes of a Resurrection to Life Again.” The

Pennsylvania Journal and Weekly Advertiser, October 31, 1765, 1.

I learned from this newspaper article that many people were upset with the

Stamp Act and that the Stamp Act was extremely irritating for the colonists. The

Stamp Act was one of the key events that had provoked the Boston Tea Party

and had caused it to happen.

17

Boston Committee of Correspondence, “Boston, May 12, 1774,” Digital Public Library of

America, http://dp.la/item/6824acab5e03c6512e19859385da0a45.

This was a notice that was sent out to all of Boston announcing the act the British

has passed, blocking the Harbour of Boston and prevented entrance and

exportation of any kind of merchandise. This helped me to see that this was the

British Parliament’s way of punishing the colonists and what triggered some of

the colonists’ anger after the tea party.

Clerk, William Cooper. Letter, May 12, 1774. Digital Public Library of America.

This letter helped me to see that colonists were not happy with the taxations and

had wanted to do something about it, and this letter gave me more information

regarding the destruction of the tea prior to reading the letter.

Drake, Francis S. Tea Leaves. Boston: Smith & Porter, Printers, 1884. Digital file.

This was a compilation of letters and documents that helped me to realize many

things about the Boston Tea Party. I learned how strongly many people felt about

repealing the Stamp Act because of how large of sums of money it was drawing

from the colonists, which resulted in riots and protests. I learned more about the

Stamp Act and Boston Tea Party and many details about it I had questioned,

were confirmed in this book.

18

Hinshelwood, Archibald. Letter to Joshua Mauger, August 19, 1765. Gilder Lehrman

Collection.

This letter helped me to understand that people who were angry with the taxation

without representation commonly either boycotted British goods or attacked the

tax collectors. The Stamp Act helped the colonists to see later on that a central

issue provoking the American Revolution was the taxation without

representation.

Ireland, W. M., and Chase Andrawn. “Postscript to the Pennsylvania Gazette.”

Pennsylvania Gazette, 1876.

This is a reproducing of a postscript to the Pennsylvania Gazette from December

24, 1773 regarding the destruction of the tea in Boston. This helped me to

understand what the American colonists were feeling at the time and that their

anger with the British Parliament had led to the Boston Tea Party. It also gave

me some information as to what the Boston Tea Party was labeled as, for it

wasn’t actually called the “Boston Tea Party” until later on. This article gave me

insight as to the feeling that there was at this time in history.

19

Pennsylvania Gazette. “No Stamped Paper to Be Had.” November 7, 1765, 1.

This newspaper helped me to get a deeper understanding of the Stamp Act. The

Stamp Act mandated taxes on all paper goods and the colonists extremely

disliked this. The colonists felt very angry with the British and they were not

happy at all with the British Parliament for taxing them without representation.

The colonists desperately wanted the Stamp Act repealed, and eventually, it was.

Petition to Selectmen for resignation of tea consignees,” Digital Public

Library of America, http://dp.la/item/b7807750c2cbb83d01bd29f289097e5d.

This petition helped me to understand how against the taxation others were and

it helped me understand the delivering of the East India Tea Company Tea and

how others reacted and felt about what had happened.

Providence Gazette (Boston), January 11, 1771.

This newspaper article gave me a little information telling me that other states

and many other American colonists were unhappy with the tea taxations and that

many people felt that something needed to be done, in which the Boston Tea

Party later occurred.

20

Pyle, Howard, “The Boston Tea Party,” Digital Public Library of

America, http://dp.la/item/b83cb5cff173d2486dc00004820f97ed.

This illustration helped me to visualize what the colonists looked like when they

disguised themselves as Indians. I learned that the wore feathers atop their

heads and paint among their faces. This helped me to see the colonists as they

overthrew the tea into the Boston Harbor.

Tea Destroyed by Indians. 1773. Image. Accessed December 30, 2016.

http://cdn.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3a50000/3a50000/3a50200/3a50224r.jpg

I learned a little bit more about the Boston Tea Party after I saw this image of a

poem written after the Boston Tea Party, honoring the people who took part in it

and the fact that it had taken place and the colonists had stood up to the British

for something they believed in. I learned that many people were happy after the

Boston Tea Party and many colonists were satisfied with the outcome.

21

Virginia Gazette, June 29, 1769. Accessed November 4, 2016.

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/HistArchive/?p_product=EANX&p_th

eme=ahnp&p_nbid=H5DR64HYMTQ3ODI3MTQxNi41MjM1MDg6MToxNDoxND

MuMjAwLjE0Ny4zNA&p_action=doc&d_viewref=search&s_lastnonissuequeryna

me=9&p_queryname=9&p_docnum=10&p_docref=v2:12AE45BF0A3FEE90@EA

NX-12CFF3498364B6A0@2367382-12CFF349890376F0@0-12CFF349A776D8

20@.

This article showed me that many people were trying to stop what was

happening. The colonists wanted their feelings known and this article helped me

to see that they were trying to inform as many people as possible.

Virginia Gazette, January 11, 1773.

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/HistArchive/?p_product=EANX&p_th

eme=ahnp&p_nbid=H5DR64HYMTQ3ODI3MTQxNi41MjM1MDg6MToxNDoxND

MuMjAwLjE0Ny4zNA&p_action=doc&d_viewref=search&s_lastnonissuequeryna

me=9&p_queryname=9&p_docnum=17&p_docref=v2:12992F6A66B3869C@EA

NX-12BABFC8B4369F78@2368684-12BABFC8D8B6E780@0-12BABFC94ADD

7A98@Boston%2C%20January%2011.

This newspaper gave me more information about the Boston Tea Party and a

better foundation to build upon as I gather other information. It explained to me

more that there were many long meetings that people attended to discuss the

matter of the taxations.

22

Secondary Sources

Admin. “The Quartering Act of 1765.” History is Fun. Last modified March 26, 2015.

Accessed January 2, 2017.

http://www.historyisfun.org/blog/quartering-act-of-1765/.

This webpage explained to me much more in depth as to what the Quartering Act

was, how it affected the colonists, and how the colonists reacted to it. I plan to

use the information I have learned and gathered to explain the Quartering Act

and how it contributed to the Boston Tea Party.

AZ Quotes. Accessed January 17, 2017. http://www.azquotes.com/quote/826439.

From this webpage, I found a quote that demonstrated the annoyance of the

colonists and their distraught reactions to the Stamp Act. Many colonists believed

that the Stamp Act was absurd and this quote from George Washington

demonstrates the anger the colonists felt and what they exactly were thinking.

23

“Boston Tea Party, the Key Event for the Revolutionary War.” Boston Tea Party

Historical Society. Accessed December 6, 2016.

http://www.boston-tea-party.org/essays/essay6.html.

This was an article on a website that gave me new insight regarding some of the

smaller acts that were passed before the Boston Tea Party and it also helped me

to see what happened directly in between the Boston Tea Party and the

Revolutionary War. I learned that the king created many acts in a row including

the Sugar Act, which was an act that majorly taxed sugar and decreased the

taxes on molasses in the British colonies.

Burgan, Michael. The Boston Tea Party: We the People. Minneapolis: Compass Point

Books, 2001. Digital file.

This E-book helped me to see that even after the Boston Tea Party, the colonists

were afraid of the consequences because no one who took part in it told anyone

else that they had until many, many years after; some even took it to the grave. I

plan to use this information to explain the feelings of everybody involved, using

examples of some of the known people who were involved.

24

Carp, Benjamin L. Defiance of the Patriots: The Boston Tea Party and the Making of

America. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2010.

This book helped me to see another side of the Boston Tea Party. I learned that

the Boston Tea Party provoked the Coercive Acts, in a way. The protests lead

the British Parliament, not to give up, but to demonstrate how much control they

had over the colonists by passing the Coercive Acts. I also learned some new

details and bits and pieces of information from reading this book.

E-mail interview by the author. North America. December 6, 2016.

From this interview with Benjamin L Carp, I learned a lot. I learned that the

colonists were feeling determined. The Tea Partiers had labored hard and took

this matter quite seriously, and kept their actions secret. Carp gave me lots of

information about the Boston Tea Party and the revolution that followed,

including many other details that I plan to use when I support my thesis

statement and state my claim.

"Freedom, Liberty, and Rights." Samuel Adams Heritage Society. Accessed March

28, 2017. http://www.samuel-adams-heritage.com/quotes/freedom-liberty.html.

This website provided me with a quote that helped me to understand Samuel

Adams and his ideas for the Boston Tea Party better because it not only backed

up some information I had in my historical paper, but it also helped me to process

what other colonists may have been feeling when it came to freedom.

25

Garrison, F. J. “The Old South Church and the Boston Tea Party.” The Woman’s

Journal (Boston), December 9, 1893. Accessed November 4, 2016.

http://gerritsen.chadwyck.com/fulltext/fulltext.do?area=documents&id=Gerritsen-

GP205_Volume_24_Issue_49-48&pagenum=1&queryId=..%2Fsession%2F1478

272349_17175&resultNum=1&entries=1000&source=config.cfg&fromPage=sear

chResults&browseType=&expandtolevel=&expandId=&zoom=200&x=25&y=9.

This article showed me that the Old South Church was important because a

meeting was held there right before the Boston Tea Party deciding that the tea

not to land and be unloaded in the port of Boston. I plan to use this information to

display the significance of that meeting.

"George III's Quotes." QuotationOf.com. Accessed February 12, 2017.

http://www.quotationof.com/george-iii.html.

This website had a number of quotes from King George that I was able to read

Through. I learned more about the British view of the Boston Tea Party and the

events surrounding it. I plan to use one of these quotes I read through to aid the

British side and argument within my paper, and to display the thoughts of most

the British and the British Parliament.

26

Getchell, Michelle. “The Boston Tea Party.” Khan Academy. Accessed December 6,

2016.

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/road-to-revolution/the-ameri

can-revolution/a/the-boston-tea-party.

This article helped me to visualize the beginning of the Boston Tea Party, right at

the Seven Years War when the British debt began and when the British started

taxing American colonists. It also gave me more in-depth details of what when on

during the Boston Tea Party.

“The Intolerable Acts and the First Continental Congress.” Khan Academy. Accessed

December 6, 2016.

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/road-to-revolution/the-ameri

can-revolution/a/the-intolerable-acts-and-the-first-continental-congress.

I learned more about the Coercive Acts when I read this article because it gave

lots of information I hadn’t known regarding why the British passed the Coercive

Acts, how they affected the colonists and what their impact was. The acts were

passed in the spring of 1774 and were known as the Intolerable Acts in the North

American colonies.

27

“The Townshend Acts and the Committees of Correspondence.” Khan Academy.

Accessed December 6, 2016.

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/road-to-revolution/the-ameri

can-revolution/a/the-townshend-acts.

This article gave me a basic understanding of the events that led to the Boston

Tea Party. It helped me to see what happened through the Stamp Act and the

Townshend Act, why the Stamp Act was repealed, and why the North American

colonists started to boycott all British products.

Griswold, Wesley S. The Night the Revolution Began. Brattleboro: Stephen Green

Press, 1972.

This book gave me a little more information and gave me a better and much

deeper understanding of the night of the Boston Tea Party. I learned that after all

of the colonists’ hard work, they felt that the Boston Tea Party was a success and

that it had made a clear point and a strong difference.

28

Hewes, George. “Boston Tea Party: Eyewitness Account by a Participant.” The History

Place. Accessed December 19, 2016.

http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/revolution/teaparty.htm.

This webpage helped me to understand what the participants really felt that cold

December night. George Hewes was a participant of the Boston Tea Party and

his story helped me to visualize what happened and get a deeper and much

better understanding of what happened. I learned from a participant’s point of

view, that although they were afraid and slightly scared, they were excited and

glad to finally be putting what they felt would be an end to the taxations from the

British Parliament.

Historic Tours of America. “The Aftermath.” Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary

Experience. Accessed January 16, 2017.

https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/the-aftermath.

I had taken a quote off of this web page because It demonstrated to me the

importance, significance, and impact the Boston Tea Party had on so many

young and old individuals. John Adams described the Boston Tea Party as a

magnificent movement. He described it as bold, daring, firm, and inflexible. This

helped me to see the effective impact this stand had on all of the colonists as a

whole, and as individuals.

29

“Boston Tea Party.” Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience. Accessed

December 16, 2016. https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/the-aftermath.

This website helped me to understand more of what went on the night of

December 16, 1773. It gave me more detail as to what happened that night and

what happened just days after the Boston Tea Party. I learned more small, yet

significant ideas such as the feelings of the colonists and the reactions of the

British. I plan to use some of this information when explaining the significance of

the Boston Tea Party.

“Boston Tea Party Facts.” Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience. Accessed

December 18, 2016. https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/boston-tea-party-facts.

This website gave me more detail as to how many were killed and injured during

the Boston Tea Party. Who organized and who opposed the destruction of the

tea. It told me that Benjamin Franklin offered to pay for the tea, even though the

offer was turned down. The website gave me lots of useful information that I plan

to use when describing the Boston Tea Party in a detailed manner.

30

“The Eleanor.” Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience. Accessed December 20,

2016. https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/eleanor.

This website gave me a little bit of information on John Rowe. It helped me to

understand that even some of the British were angered with the British because

John Rowe helped to overthrow tea aboard his own ship, the Eleanor. This article

helped me to understand part of the British point of view of what happened.

“Samuel Adams (1722-1803).” Boston Tea Party: A Revolutionary Experience.

Accessed December 20, 2016.

https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/samuel-adams.

This website gave me lots of information regarding Samuel Adams and his place

in the destruction of the tea. Adams had a dislike of the Parliament and had seen

the Stamp Act as just another example of the power the Parliament had over the

colonists. This website helped me to understand what people really felt when

they were destroying the tea.

31

History.com Staff. “The Boston Tea Party.” History.com. Last modified 2009. Accessed

December 29, 2016.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-boston-tea-party.

This website gave me more information pertaining to the Coercive Acts, an act

passed the spring after the Boston Tea Party. I learned that the British

Parliament was mad, which was what drove them to passing the Coercive Act.

This act was also known as the Intolerable Acts and closed Boston to shipping

anything in or out.

“Parliament Passes the Quartering Act.” History.com. Last modified 2009. Accessed

January 3, 2017.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/parliament-passes-the-quartering-act.

This webpage informed and educated me a lot more regarding the Quartering

Act. I learned that the soldiers were required to be housed in barracks. If there

wasn’t enough room, the colonists were required to house the soldiers. I also

learned more about the effects of the Quartering Act on the colonists and the

actions of the colonists.

32

“Tea Act.” History.com. Last modified 2009. Accessed January 11, 2017.

http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/tea-act.

This webpage provided me lots of information about the Tea Act. I learned that

the purpose behind the Tea Act was only to benefit the British government’s

struggling economy, there would be no benefit for the colonists. I learned more

about the reactions of the colonists and what they did in reply.

“Townshend Acts.” History.com. Last modified 2009. Accessed January 2, 2017.

http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/townshend-acts.

This webpage was helpful to me because I learned more of the Townshend Acts.

I now understood the origin of the Act’s name, colonists view on the act, when it

was repealed, and how the British felt it would play out. I learned that the

Townshend Acts were named after Charles Townshend, and that he hoped the

act would lower the imperial costs in the colonies. It was repealed in April of

1770, except for the tax on tea, which had led to the Tea Act and the Boston Tea

Party.

33

Howe, Julia Ward. “The Boston Tea-Party.” The Women’s Journal (Boston), December

16, 1893. Accessed November 4, 2016.

http://gerritsen.chadwyck.com/fulltext/fulltext.do?area=documents&id=Gerritsen-

GP205_Volume_24_Issue_50-7&pagenum=1&queryId=..%2Fsession%2F14782

72349_17175&resultNum=2&entries=1000&source=config.cfg&fromPage=searc

hResults&browseType=&expandtolevel=&expandId=&zoom=200&x=12&y=10.

This newspaper article was of a poem written to explain the significance of the

Boston Party. This helped to understand the impact the tea party had on others,

even years after the destruction of the tea when the buzz from the Boston Tea

Party had died down slowly.

IAC Publishing. “What Happened after the Boston Tea Party.” Reference. Accessed

December 16, 2016.

https://www.reference.com/history/happened-after-boston-tea-party-df3bf93bc16

01558

This article gave me a base understanding of each of the acts that were passed

before, during, and after the Boston Tea Party that were of any significance. This

website gave me a foundation of knowledge that I built upon using some of my

other sources.

34

“What Was the Purpose of the Coercive Acts?” Reference. Accessed December 18,

2016.

https://www.reference.com/history/purpose-coercive-acts-b1199b6516d456be.

This website helped me to understand and get more of a grasp of knowledge

regarding the Coercive Acts. The Coercive Acts were to punish the residents of

Boston for the Boston Tea Party and to strengthen control of the British over

Massachusetts. I plan to use the information I took from this article to help me

explain the significance of the Coercive Acts.

Ibis Communications. “The Boston Tea Party, 1773.” Eye Witness to History. Last

modified 2002. Accessed November 4, 2016.

http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/teaparty.htm.

This article gave me a detailed overview of the Boston Tea Party and the events

that led up to the Revolutionary War. It helped me to understand the importance

and effect of the Boston Tea Party and how the colonists were feeling when they

participated.

35

“John Hancock - Smuggling Powerhouse.” Boston Tea Party Historical Society.

Accessed December 20, 2016.

http://www.boston-tea-party.org/smuggling/John-Hancock.html.

This website helped me to see what part John Hancock took in the Boston Tea

Party. I learned that he did not directly participate in the Boston Tea Party, but he

was so rich because he smuggled Dutch tea, which was much cheaper than East

Indian tea. He was against the East Indian Tea and was later charged for

smuggling tea.

Journal of Social History, Summer 2012.

This journal helped me to visualize how crazy the idea of the Boston Tea Party

really was. It helped me to see how outside of the box thinking was used to plan

such an event that would be recognized and honored throughout history. This

journal helped me to see the true significance of the actions of the American

colonists.

Lawler, Sean. “John Adams and the Boston Tea Party.” Boston Tea Party: A

Revolutionary Experience. Last modified August 21, 2014. Accessed December

20, 2016. https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/john-adams-boston-tea-party.

This website taught me a little bit about the role John Adams played in the

Boston Tea Party. It helped me to understand what part he took and what

Adam's’ reaction was the the Boston Tea Party and what had happened.

36

Poindexter, Leon. Telephone interview by the author. North America. December 5,

2016.

Leon Poindexter’s interview helped me in many ways. I learned that a main short

term effect was that the port of Boston had shut down. He told me things I

couldn’t learn from reading a book and gave me many useful pieces of

information to work off of in my project.

“Quotations - Stamp Act Crisis.” Alpha History. Accessed January 27, 2017.

http://alphahistory.com/americanrevolution/quotations-stamp-act-crisis/.

This website supplied me with many quotes regarding the Stamp Act crisis that

helped me to attain a deeper understanding for the oppositions and agreements

with the Stamp Act. I learned more about the Stamp Act just through a few

quotes from people involved in the crisis.

Rothbard, Murray N. Advance to Revolution. Vol. 3 of Conceived in Liberty. Conceived

in Liberty. New Rochelle: Arlington House Publishers, 1976.

I learned from this book what the British Parliament’s view was on the Boston

Tea Party. I learned that the British didn’t actually think the Tea Act would cause

such a stir, they hadn’t expected the Boston Tea Party to happen. I plan to use

this information when explaining the British view on the situation.

37

Teaching History. “The Boston Tea Party.” June 2006, sec. 123, 18.

This article regarding the Boston Tea Party helped me to understand and gave

me the knowledge of where the Boston Tea Party happened and what ships

were raided of their tea. It told me that there were three ships raided, the

colonists had split into groups of three and raided their ship.

“Tea, Taxes, and the American Revolution.” Video file, 10:54. Khan Academy.

Accessed December 6, 2016.

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/world-history/crashcourse-worldhistory

/you-aint-the-boss-of-me-2/v/crash-course-world-history-28.

This was an extremely informative video that gave me more information in all

areas regarding the Boston Tea Party. It gave me a better understanding of all

the events that led up to the Boston Tea Party, such as explaining the Seven

Years War and the Stamp Act. I learned that the British Parliament issued the

Stamp Act to repay the debt, only to later repeal it.

38

“Timeline of Events Preceding the Boston Tea Party.” Boston Tea Party Historical

Society. Accessed January 2, 2017.

http://www.boston-tea-party.org/timeline.html.

This webpage introduced me to more information and a better understanding

some of the events leading up to the Boston Tea Party. I learned that the

Quartering Act required colonists to house soldiers and to accommodate them, it

was later broadened in 1774. I also learned how unfair the Tea Act was, because

the British had a selling advantage with a lower tax.

“Top 10 Events That Lead to the Boston Tea Party.” Boston Tea Party Historical

Society. Accessed December 30, 2016.

http://www.boston-tea-party.org/resources/list.html.

I learned from this article about the 10 most important events that took place prior

to the Boston Tea Party. Some of the acts and events that were mentioned were

the Stamp Act, the Sugar and Molasses Act, the Tea Act and the Boston

Massacre. I learned more about each of these and what they did for the Boston

Tea Party.

39

“Townshend Acts.” Land of the Brave. Accessed January 7, 2017.

https://www.landofthebrave.info/townshend-acts.htm.

This website helped me to understand the Townshend Acts more. I learned more

about the separate individual acts underneath the Townshend Acts. I learned

what each of the separate acts did and that they each did something for the

American colonies.

“What Was the Boston Tea Party?” Boston Tea Party Historical Society. Last modified

2009. Accessed November 15, 2016. http://www.boston-tea-party.org.

This website helped me to see what happened and how the taxations made the

colonists felt. I understood the reasoning behind the taxations from Britain but

then I also understood the effect the taxations had on the American colonists.

Young, Alfred F. The Shoemaker and the Tea Party. Boston: Beacon Press, 1999.

The book The Shoemaker and the Tea Party helped me to understand the

Boston Tea Party better. The novel stressed the amount of time and work that

went into its careful and articulate planning. The novel also focused a chapter on

a man involved greatly with the Boston Tea Party, which helped me to see the

feelings some individuals may have been feeling.

40