Great Britian’s Seven Years War with France proved a great financial drain. Those in England were already burdened with taxes. The American Colonies, well established by 1760, seemed the perfect means for new revenue. The King of England had sent troops to fight the French forces on the American frontier. Certainly, the colonies needed to show their appreciation by their submission in providing the monies necessary for this defense–or so they were told. Did it not matter to Great Britain that the colonies provided soldiers on the battlefront? And not only the soldiers, but each colony saw to the provision of each soldier. Had the American Colonists not done their part in defeating the French? As far as their King was concerned, the answer was a resounding “No!” And so, the duties on the colonists via annual acts of Parliament began–without representation for the colonies in Parliament.
Let’s continue to explore why Massachusetts led the way in protest of the Parliamentary Acts. In January of 1765, the businesses of a prominent Boston merchant by the name of Nathaniel Wheelwright collapsed. Wheelwright fled Boston, leaving many in varying degrees of debt. The total sum was more than £150,000. The equivalent today would be the enormous sum of $44,322,479.26. Many from Boston and surrounding towns were forced into bankruptcy. This great financial setback was exacerbated as Boston’s shipping industry declined.
By the 1770s, Boston was no longer the prominent social and economic power in the colonies. Philadelphia and New York rapidly expanded. Boston’s growth slowed. The resulting strain on the economy led to unemployment. This, in turn, created the perfect conditions for civil unrest.
The Parliamentary restrictions and taxes imposed on the colonies prior to 1765 focused mainly on shipping. If the merchants had to pay more by way of increased taxes for certain products (i.e. molasses) they passed it on to their customers by increasing the price of the goods affected. The consumer could decide whether they would pay the increased price or go without the product. In 1765, just as the monumental crisis of Wheelwright’s failure hit Boston, the Stamp Act was forced on the colonists. This tax, unlike the others, was an internal tax placed on items needed and used each and every day by the colonists. This tax, coupled with the appointment of Stamp Act Agents by the Crown was met with resistance throughout the colonies–but especially in Boston.
In 1765, a group of men lead by Samuel Adams and James Otis began to meet secretly in Boston. Some referred to this group as “The Long Room Club.” A list of its members was never found–probably never put in writing. They would become the Think Tank of the American Revolution
(Pictures of “Detested Stamp”‘; Samuel Adams; James Otis)