Category: American Reovlution

John Whiting

John Whiting owned and operated a book store in Lancaster, Massachusetts from 1794 to 1810 located on the busy stage coach route from Boston to Worcester and further points west, both locations of which can be seen on an 1831 map of Lancaster. His interest in books themselves and his love of reading provided his education, and…

James Otis, Speech Against Writs of Assistance

February 24, 1761 INTRODUCTION By 1760 the British seemed poised for victory in the French and Indian War. But as the expense of the war weighed on the British treasury, Parliament eyed the North American colonies as a source of revenue. To increase the payment of taxes on imports and curtail rampant smuggling, customs officials…

The Aitken Bible

The Aitken Bible and Congress Prior to the American Revolution, the only English Bibles in the colonies were imported either from Europe or England. Publication of the Bible was regulated by the British government, and an English language Bible could not be printed without a special license from the British government; all English language Bibles…

Signing of the Mayflower Compact

The Mayflower Compact is the agreement between the 41 male passengers of the ship Mayflower establishing the form of government of the Plymouth Colony (1620-1691 CE), signed on 11 November 1620 CE off the coast of present-day Massachusetts, USA.

The Coercive (Intolerable) Acts of 1774

The Boston Port Act was the first of the Coercive Acts. Parliament passed the bill on March 31, 1774, and King George III gave it royal assent on May 20th. The act authorized the Royal Navy to blockade Boston Harbor because “the commerce of his Majesty’s subjects cannot be safely carried on there."

Washington’s Culper Spy Ring

The Culper Spy Ring was an American spy network operating during the War of American Independence that provided George Washington with information on British troop movements.

Federal Congress Establishes Thanksgiving

Americans don’t know it and children aren’t taught it, but George Washington is responsible for our Thanksgiving holiday. It was our first president, not the Pilgrims and not Abraham Lincoln, who led the charge to make this day of thanks a truly national event.

John Adams & The Stamp Act

In May of 1765, the news of the impending Stamp Act reached Boston. Starting November 1, 1765, all printed documents would be required by law to carry a stamp. Over the course of the summer of 1765, colonists grew increasingly agitated with the idea of the Stamp Act. On August 14, tensions finally reached a boiling point.

John Adams defeats Thomas Jefferson, 1796 election

In a campaign that rivals any current presidential election for insults and rancor, John Adams defeated Thomas Jefferson in the 1796 election, a race that changed American politics forever.

The Connolly Plot

One of the earliest and most jaw-droppingly ambitious plans to secure the city for the British came from the mind of Dr. John Connolly. [1] Word of his “plot” spread widely across the colonies in 1775 and came to symbolize the lengths to which Loyalists were willing to go to foil the American Revolution.