The Boston Tea Party

Table of Contents

• What Was the Boston Tea Party?
  • November 27, 1773
• New World, New Freedoms
  • November 28, 1773
• Fighting the French and the Indians
  • November 28, 1773
• Taxation without Representation
  • November 28, 1773
• A Massacre in Boston
• Teatime
  • December 8, 1773
• The Night of the Party
  • December 16, 1773 – late afternoon
  • December 17, 1773 – after midnight
• The Party’s Over
  • December 18, 1773
• The Shot Heard Round the World
  • July 28, 1776 – in Williamsburg, Virginia

What Was the Boston Tea Party?

December 16, 1773 was a chilly day in Boston. Everybody woke up, huddled under wool blankets, and put their kettles on the fire for a bit of… something warm. What they wanted was a warm cup of tea. Unfortunately, throughout the thirteen colonies, England’s King George III had implemented a tax on all tea that was imported from England. The money from the tax would go directly to Britain.

Many colonists, called Patriots, decided to fight against the taxes. Others stayed loyal to the King, and were considered “friends of the government,” or Loyalists. Many Patriots resided in Boston. They decided to boycott the English tea by refusing to buy it. Some Patriots made threats against the tax agents whose job it was to collect the taxes.

In the fall of 1773, a huge shipment of tea crossed the Atlantic Ocean. The crates of tea sat off the docks of Boston Harbor. When the crew tried to unload the tea, Patriots would block their path. All over the city, handbills were posted that stated that the detested tea had arrived in the harbor. For three weeks, Patriot leaders asked the ships’ captains to return to Britain with the tea, but they wouldn’t budge.

December 16, 1773 was the deadline. At this time, the colonists would have no choice but to pay the tea taxes or be fined or thrown in jail. But the Patriots refused to back down. They believed the freedom of the colonies was at stake. If they gave in to the taxes, more injustices would follow.

As the people of Boston looked out their windows at the tea-laden ships in the harbor, they had no idea the events of the day would turn into the Boston Tea Party, and eventually lead to the birth of the United States of America.

November 27, 1773

Felicity Merriman and her father are sailing to Boston on a ship called the Dove. When she’s on the deck, Felicity feels the wind on her face, and her cloak billows out behind her. She’s very excited to see her father’s brother, Uncle George, as well as her Aunt Charlotte and Cousin Charles. Charles is sixteen now, and has his very own horse!

Father is eager to meet with Uncle George. Uncle George imports goods from England, and helps provide supplies to Father’s store to sell in Williamsburg. But the taxes have Father worried. The imported goods have gotten so expensive that Father is nervous he’ll go into debt buying them for the store. He’s already had to raise his prices, and his customers are unhappy about that. Felicity hopes Uncle George will be able to help Father lower prices so his customers are happy again.