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Washington leads his troops to western Pennsylvania (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Washington leads his troops to western Pennsylvania (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

The Whiskey Rebellion, less commonly known as the Whiskey Insurrection, was a popular uprising that had its beginnings in 1791 and culminated in an insurrection in 1794 in the locality of Washington, Pennsylvania, in the Monongahela Valley. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is an art museum located on the eastern edge of Central Park, along what is known as Museum Mile in New York City, Washington is a city in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States and part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The Monongahela River (məˌnɒŋɡəˈheɪlə also known locally as the Mon /ˈmɒn/ is a River on the Allegheny Plateau in North-Central The rebellion occurred shortly after the Articles of Confederation had been replaced by a stronger federal government under the United States Constitution in 1789. The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, also the Articles of Confederation was the governing Constitution of the alliance of thirteen independent and The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme Law of the United States.

Contents

The 1791 tax

The new federal government, at the urging of the first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, assumed the states' debt from the American Revolutionary War. The United States Secretary of the Treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, concerned with finance and monetary matters, and until In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" In 1791 Hamilton convinced Congress to approve taxes on distilled spirits and carriages. Year 1791 ( MDCCXCI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Hamilton's principal reason for the tax was that he wanted to pay down the national debt, but he justified the tax "more as a measure of social discipline than as a source of revenue. "[1] But most importantly, Hamilton "wanted the tax imposed to advance and secure the power of the new federal government. "[2]

The tax was designed so smaller distillers would pay by the gallon, while larger distillers (who could produce in volume) could take advantage of a flat fee. The net result was to affect smaller producers more than larger ones. Large producers were assessed a tax ranging from 7 to 18 cents per gallon. But Western settlers were short of cash to begin with and lacked any practical means to get their grain to market other than fermenting and distilling it into relatively portable distilled spirits, due to their distance from markets and the lack of good roads. Additionally, whiskey was often used among western farmers as a medium of exchange or as a barter good. Barter is a type of Trade in which goods or services are directly exchanged

The tax on whiskey was bitterly and fiercely opposed among the Cohee on the frontier from the day it was passed. Tuckahoe was a term used during the 18th and 19th centuries to describe a cultural group i Western farmers considered it to be both unfair and discriminatory, since they had traditionally converted their excess grain into liquor. Since the nature of the tax affected those who sold the whiskey, it directly affected many farmers. Many protest meetings were held, and a situation arose which was reminiscent of the opposition to the Stamp Act of 1765 before the American Revolution. The Stamp Act of 1765 (short title Duties in American Colonies Act 1765; 5 George III c In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots"

From Pennsylvania to Georgia, the western counties engaged in a campaign of harassment of the federal tax collectors. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern The State of Georgia ( is a state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule "Whiskey Boys" also made violent protests in Maryland, Virginia, and North and South Carolina. The Commonwealth of Virginia ( is an American state North Carolina ( is a state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States South Carolina ( is a state in the southern region ( Deep South) of the United States of America. [3]

The Insurrection

By the summer of 1794, tensions reached a fevered pitch all along the western frontier as the settlers' primary marketable commodity was threatened by the federal taxation measures. Finally, the civil protests became an armed rebellion. The first shots were fired at the Oliver Miller Homestead in present day South Park Township, Pennsylvania, about ten miles south of Pittsburgh. See also South Park (disambiguation South Park Township is located in the southern part of Allegheny County Pennsylvania, near As word of the rebellion spread across the frontier, a whole series of loosely organized resistance measures were taken, including robbing the mail, stopping court proceedings, and the threat of an assault on Pittsburgh. One group, disguised as women, assaulted a tax collector, cropped his hair, coated him with tar and feathers, and stole his horse. Tarring and feathering is a physical Punishment, used to enforce formal justice in Feudal Europe and informal justice in Europe and its Colonies

George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, remembering Shays' Rebellion from just eight years before, decided to make Pennsylvania a testing ground for federal authority. George Washington (February 22 1732 December 14 1799 served as the first President of the United States of America (1789&ndash1797 and led the Shays' Rebellion was an armed uprising in Central and Western Massachusetts from 1786 to 1787 Washington ordered federal marshals to serve court orders requiring the tax protesters to appear in federal district court. On August 7, 1794, Washington invoked Martial Law to summon the militias of Pennsylvania, Virginia and several states. Events 322 BC - Battle of Crannon between Athens and Macedon following the death of Alexander the Great. Year 1794 ( MDCCXCIV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a The Militia Act of 1792 was a series of Statutes enacted by the second United States Congress in 1792. The rebel force they sought was likewise composed of Pennsylvanians, Virginians, and possibly men from other states. [4]

The militia force of 12,950 men was organized, roughly the size of the entire army in the Revolutionary War. Under the personal command of Washington, Hamilton and Revolutionary War hero General Henry "Lighthorse Harry" Lee, the army assembled in Harrisburg and marched into western Pennsylvania (to what is now Monongahela) in October of 1794. Henry Lee III called "Light Horse Harry", ( January 29 1756 – March 25 1818) was a Cavalry officer in Western Pennsylvania consists of the western third of the state of Pennsylvania in the United States. Monongahela is a city in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States ( Zip Code 15063 and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area The rebels "could never be found," according to Jefferson, but the militia expended considerable effort rounding up 20 prisoners, clearly demonstrating Federalist authority in the national government. The men were imprisoned, where one died, while two, including Philip Vigol (later spelled Philip Wigal), were convicted of treason and sentenced to death by hanging. Washington, however, pardoned them on the grounds that one was a "simpleton," and the other, "insane. "[5]

Only two were actually arrested and jailed: judge Robert Philson and devout Quaker Herman Husband. Robert Philson (abt 1759 - July 25, 1831) was born in County Donegal, Ulster, Ireland, and immigrated to Pennsylvania with Herman Husband (1724&ndash1795 (also known as Harmon Husband) was a farmer radical pamphleteer and preacher Philson was released by Washington, but Husband died in jail before he could be released.

By November, some individuals were fined and charged with "assisting and abetting in setting up a seditious pole in opposition to the laws of the United States," and in January 1796 the following were fined five to fifteen shillings each: Nicholas Kobe, Adam Bower, Abraham Cable Jr, Dr. John Kimmell, Henry Foist, Jacob Holy, Adam Holy, Michael Chintz, George Swart, and Adam Stahl of Brothers Valley township; John Heminger, John Armstrong, George Weimer, George Tedrow, Abraham Miller, John Miller Jr, Benjamin Brown and Peter Bower of Milford township; Emanuel Brallier, and George Ankeny, of Quemahoning township; Peter Augustine, James Conner, Henry Everly, Daniel McCartey, William Pinkerton, and Jonathan Woodsides of Turkeyfoot township. [6]

Tom the Tinker

"Tom the Tinker" assumed the leadership of the Whiskey Rebellion in the early 1790s. He came about after it was decided that to merely attack tax collectors or those who rented offices and lodging to tax collectors wasn't enough; pressure needed to be applied to those who had registered their stills and were paying the tax. A tax collector is a person who collects unpaid Taxes from other people or corporations In essence, Tom the Tinker illuminated the point that compliance with the law was as contemptible an action as collecting the whiskey tax. William Hogeland has described the situation thus:

You might find a note posted on a tree outside your house, requiring you to publish in the Gazette your hatred of the whiskey tax and your commitment to the cause; otherwise, the note promised, your still would be mended. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG" is the largest daily Newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Tom had a wicked sense of humor and a literary bent: "mended" meant shot full of holes or burned. Tom published on his own too, rousing his followers to action, telling the Gazette's editor in cover notes to run the messages or suffer the consequences. [7]

Groups formed calling themselves Tom the Tinker's Men. They assured Tom the Tinker's threats were carried out. Some believe John Holcroft, a leading member of the Mingo Creek Association and veteran of Shays' Rebellion[8], was Tom the Tinker, or perhaps the author of the letters attributed to Tom, but this has never been proven. Shays' Rebellion was an armed uprising in Central and Western Massachusetts from 1786 to 1787 It is not known whether Tom was an actual individual or a character created by the leading members of the Whiskey Rebellion to serve as their leader, much like Ned Ludd's role as leader of the Luddites. Ned Ludd or Ned Lud (possibly born Ned Ludlam is the person from whom the Luddites took their name The Luddites were a Social movement of British Textile artisans in the early Nineteenth century who protested&mdashoften by destroying mechanized Hogeland takes issue with the notion that "Tom the Tinker" was a pseudonym or nom de guerre for one of the other participants in the rebellion, saying, "Tom wasn't an alias for a person. He was the stark fact that loyal opposition to the resistance was disallowed. Tom was Mingo Creek personified. "[8]

Consequences

This marked the first time under the new United States Constitution that the federal government used military force to exert authority over the nation's citizens. It was also one of only two times that a sitting President personally commanded the military in the field. (The other was after President James Madison fled the British occupation of Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812. James Madison Jr (March 16 1751 – June 28 1836 was an American Politician, the fourth President of the United States (1809–1817 and one of the Founding The Burning of Washington took place in 1814 during the Anglo-American War of 1812. The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the British Empire, particularly Great Britain and her North American colonies )

The military suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion set a precedent that U. S. citizens who wished to change the law had to do so peacefully through constitutional means; otherwise, the government would meet any threats to disturb the peace with force.

The suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion also had the unintended consequences of encouraging small whiskey producers in Kentucky and Tennessee, which remained outside the sphere of Federal control for many more years. Unintended consequences are outcomes that are not (or not limited to what the actor intended in a particular situation The Commonwealth of Kentucky ( is a state located in the East Central United States of America. Tennessee ( is a state located in the Southern United States. In these frontier areas, they also found good corn-growing country as well as limestone-filtered water and therefore began making whiskey from corn; this corn whiskey developed into Bourbon. Limestone is a Sedimentary rock composed largely of the Mineral Calcite ( Calcium carbonate: CaCO3 Bourbon is an American Whiskey, a type of distilled spirit, made primarily from Corn and named for Bourbon County Kentucky. [9] Additionally, the rebellion and its suppression helped turn people away from the Federalist Party and toward the Democratic-Republican Party. The Federalist Party (or Federal Party) was an American political party in the period 1792 to 1816 with remnants lasting into the 1820s This is shown in the 1794 Philadelphia congressional election, in which upstart Democratic Republican John Swanwick won a stunning victory over incumbent Federalist Thomas Fitzsimons, carrying 7 of 12 districts and 57% of the vote. John Swanwick (1760 - August 1, 1798) was a United States Representative from Pennsylvania. Thomas Fitzsimons (1741–1811 was an American merchant and statesman of Philadelphia Pennsylvania.

The hated whiskey tax was repealed in 1803, having been largely unenforceable outside of Western Pennsylvania, and even there never having been collected with much success. [10]

References in popular culture

Susanna Rowson used the Whiskey Rebellion as inspiration for a musical farce for the stage called The Volunteers. Susanna Rowson, née Haswell (1762-1824 was a British - American novelist poet playwright religious writer stage actress and educator The lyrics were set to music by Alexander Reinagle of the New Company, which performed the play in Philadelphia in 1795. Alexander Robert Reinagle (b Portsmouth, England, April 23, 1756 - d Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə

L. Neil Smith's novel "The Probability Broach" contains an alternate history where Albert Gallatin convinced the militia force not to put down the Whiskey Rebellion, but instead to march on the nation's capital, execute George Washington for treason, and to replace the Constitution with a revised Articles of Confederation. L Neil Smith (full name Lester Neil Smith III) also known to readers and fans as El Neil, is a Libertarian Science fiction Author The Probability Broach is the first novel (1980 by science fiction writer L Alternate history or alternative history is a subgenre of Speculative fiction (or Science fiction) and Historical fiction Abraham Alfonse Albert Gallatin (January 29 1761 &ndash August 12 1849 was a Swiss-American Ethnologist, linguist, politician, Diplomat George Washington (February 22 1732 December 14 1799 served as the first President of the United States of America (1789&ndash1797 and led the As a result, the United States becomes a libertarian utopia called the North American Confederation. Libertarianism is a term used by a broad spectrum of political philosophies which prioritize individual Liberty and seek to minimize or even abolish the Albert Gallatin's intervention in the Whiskey Rebellion comes as a result of an additional word in the Declaration of Independence, which in the parallel universe contains the phrase "deriving its just powers from the unanimous consent of the governed".

The Whiskey Rebellion is referenced in Albert Frank Beddoe's song "Copper Kettle", written in 1953 and recorded by Joan Baez, and by Bob Dylan on his 1970 album Self Portrait. Joan Chandos Baez (born January 9, 1941 in Staten Island, New York) an American Folk singer and Songwriter known Bob Dylan (born Robert Zimmerman, May 24 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota) is an American singer-songwriter author poet and painter who has been a major Self Portrait is Bob Dylan 's 10th studio album released by Columbia Records in 1970 The song contains the line "We ain't paid no whiskey tax since 1793".

See also

References

  1. ^ Morrison, Samuel E. The American Whiskey Trail is a cultural heritage and tourism initiative of the Distilled Spirits Council in cooperation with historic Mount Vernon. Production Uses Usually large scale distillation is practiced for the purpose of making ethanol for drinking, yet it may also practiced for creating Biofuel The Rum Rebellion, also known as the Rum Puncheon Rebellion of 1808 was the only successful armed takeover of government in Australia's recorded history (1927). Oxford History of the United States 1783-1917, 182.  
  2. ^ Graetz, Michael J. ; Schenk, Deborah H. (2005). Federal Income Taxation: Principles and Policies. New York: Foundation Press, 4. ISBN 1-58778-907-8.  
  3. ^ What is the Whiskey rebellion of 1794?
  4. ^ Virginia Border Counties During Pennsylvania's Whiskey Rebellion
  5. ^ United States v. Vigol, 29 Fed. Cas. 376 (No. 16621) (C. C. D. Pa. 1795)
  6. ^ Somerset County, PAGW - History of Bedford and Somerset, Chapter X
  7. ^ Hogeland, William (2006). The Whiskey Rebellion: George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and the Frontier Rebels Who Challenged America's Newfound Sovereignty. Scribner, p. 130. ISBN 978-0-7432-5490-8.  
  8. ^ a b Hogeland, p. 131.
  9. ^ http://www.tastings.com/spirits/american_whiskey.html
  10. ^ The Free Market

Bibliography

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