-
Tea Act
Parliament passes the Tea Act, which lowered the tax on tea to three pence per pound in an effort to bolster the British East India Company and implicitly asserted Parliament’s right to continue taxing the American colonies. -
Boston's North Caucus
Boston’s North End Caucus demands, unsuccessfully, that the tea consignees resign at noon under the Liberty Tree, a gathering place for Patriot rallies. -
Body of the People
The “Body of the People” meet at the Old South Meeting House. This meeting is not an official town meeting, but instead includes participants from outlying towns and those who do not meet the property requirements for voting. The large meeting moves from Faneuil Hall to Old South Meeting House. The meeting resolves the tea must not be unloaded, but instead sent back to England. -
Tea in Harbor
Between 6:00 and 9:00 P.M. 340 chests of tea are destroyed and thrown from the tea ships into the harbor.The colonists demanded that the tea be returned to England. After Massachusetts Governor Thomas Hutchinson refused, Patriot leader Samuel Adams organized the “tea party” with about 60 members of the Sons of Liberty, his underground resistance group. -
Boston Bill
Parliament passes The Boston Port Bill, closing Boston to ocean traffic until the destroyed tea is paid for. The destroyed tea was worth over 9,000 pounds sterling, which would be worth over 2 million in today’s US dollars -
Philadelphia Resigns
Boston learns that tea consignees in Philadelphia have resigned due to community pressure. New York’s consignees had already given up responsibility for the tea that landed in their harbor.
