Good Morning America!
So, I've Diaried about Founding Fathers - Thomas Jefferson, communicating with John Adams, and William Smith concerning Articles of the "new" American Constitution. The next two were about the Townshend Acts, and the Tea Act of 1773.
Today, you will see one of the more well known events that ultimately led to the American Revolutionary War, or what documentation I can stick in there without writing a book.
The Boston Massacre.
Preceding the Boston Massacre, the Townshend Acts were put into place - giving British Redcoats the right to break and enter, and seize contraband Tea, if it were Dutch Tea (Dutch smugglers brought cheaper, untaxed tea). They typically took somewhat more of the possessions of the Colonists. (Remind you of anything?)
Tea rotted on the docks in Charleston, was 'sent back' from New York and Philadelphia, but in Boston - the Colonists refused to let the ships sitting in the harbor, come to dock and unload. They knew that the tea had been made cheaper (See last Diary) to undercut the Dutch smugglers - but written into the law was a continued abuse - Taxation Without Representation.
The Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770. Things had been bubbling and brewing for about three years. The People were at a boiling point.
British Troops had been stationed in Boston for the last two years to enforce the extremely unpopular Townshend Acts.
On the evening of March 5th, Private Hugh White - British Redcoat, stood guarding the Royal Custom House on King Street (State Street today). A young civilian named Edward Gerrish accused Captain Lieutenant John Goldfinch, who was also present - of not paying a bill due to Gerrish's employer (a wig maker). Private White then told young Gerrish to be more 'respectful' to the officer. Insults were exchanged, after which Private White left his post, approached Edward Gerrish - and bashed him in the head with his musket. A friend of Gerrish, Bartholomew Broaders became angry and started an argument with Private White. Hearing the commotion, a crowd began to build around them. 19-year old Henry Knox (my ancestor!), who would later serve as a General under George Washington spoke up and told Private White that if he fired his gun, he should die for it.
The crowd continued to get bigger, and some went into the churches and started ringing the bells (a signal for fires at the time) - and this brought even more people out into the streets. The crowd began throwing things at Private White and daring him to fire his weapon. At the nearby Redcoat barracks, Captain Thomas Preston was told about the situation, and he and an NCO, and 7-8 soldiers went down to back-up Private White. They pushed through the crowd, with fixed bayonets, and turned to face the crowd, pointing their guns at them. Henry Knox, in an unsuccessful attempt to tone things down, said to Captain Preston, "For God's sake, take care of your men. If they fire, you must die". Captain Preston knew this and said so. The protesters kept throwing snowballs and other things at the soldiers, taunting them. One of the objects thrown, hit another soldier, Private Montgomery - knocking him down. Montgomery dropped his gun in the process, and then picked it up, and without orders shouted to fire into the crowd - and fired his musket into the crowd. Another civilian named Richard Preston, who was carrying a 'cudgel' - hit Private Montgomery on his arm, and then swung it at Captain Preston's head, but missed it and struck his arm. This was one of those moments, when time seems frozen. Adrenaline was pumping, and after pause, and without orders, all of the Redcoats fired into the crowd.
Eleven people were hit by the shots. Three were killed instantly - Ropemaker Samuel Gray, Mariner James Caldwell, and a mixed-race sailor named Crispus Attucks. A 17-year old boy named Samuel Maverick got hit by ricochet and died a few hours later. The fifth casualty was Patrick Carr, and Irish immigrant - who died two weeks later as a result of the wounds he received.
The crowd moved away from the Royal Custom House, but got much larger in the surrounding streets. Captain Preston called out the rest of the 29th Regiment to guard the State House, and summoned Governor Thomas Hutchinson. Governor Hutchinson arrived, but was forced into the Council Chamber of the State House. He went up to a balcony and addressed the crowd, promising a fair inquiry if the crowd would disperse.
As promised, Hutchinson began investigating immediately. By the next morning, Captain Preston and the soldiers that had fired into the crowd were arrested.
The Boston "selectmen" demanded that all of the stationed soldiers be moved out of the City and over to Castle William, on Castle Island. The Governor claimed that he didn't have the power to order them out of the City, and the Commander of the troops refused. The crowds now Occupying the streets became angry, and it started to get ugly. Facing imminent violence, the "Town Council" decided, "under duress" to remove the troops. This left Governor Hutchinson with zero ability to police the City.
Preston, and the soldiers that had fired their weapons were indicted for murder. Hutchinson managed to delay the trials for an entire year.
Ultimately, six of the soldiers were 'acquitted'. The remaining two soldiers were found guilty of manslaughter - but their sentence was reduced to "having their thumbs branded in open court". Before this reduction, the punishment was decided as a death sentence for them.
Below the squiggly, is the text of what was an anonymous account of the event, called, "A Short Narrative of the Horrid Massacre in Boston". There's much more to the story, and involved many Founding Fathers. The spelling is as it was then.
Please share and discuss.
Anonymous Account of the Boston Massacre
A Short Narrative of the Horrid Massacre in Boston. Printed by Order of the Town of
Boston. Re-published with Notes and Illustrations by John Doggett, Jr., (New York,
1849), vp. 13-19; 21- 22; 28-30.
THE HORRID MASSACRE IN BOSTON, PERPETRATED IN THE EVENING
OF THE FIFTH DAY OF MARCH, 1770, BY SOLDIERS OF THE TWENTYNINTH
REGIMENT WHICH WITH THE FOURTEENTH REGIMENT WERE
THEN QUARTERED THERE; WITH SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE STATE
OF THINGS PRIOR TO THAT CATASTROPHE
It may be a proper introduction to this narrative, briefly to represent the state of things for some time previous to the said Massacre; and this seems necessary in order to the forming a just idea of the causes of it.
At the end of the late [French and Indian] war, in which this province bore so
distinguished a part, a happy union subsisted between Great Britain and the colonies.
This was unfortunately interrupted by the Stamp Act, but it was in some measure restored by the repeal of it. It was again interrupted by other acts of parliament for taxing America; and by the appointment of a Board of Commissioners, in pursuance of an act, which by the face of it was made for the relief and encouragement of commerce, but which in its operation, it was apprehended, would have, and it has in fact had, a contrary effect. By the said act the said Commissioners were "to be resident in some convenient part of his Majesty's dominions in America." This must be understood to be in some part convenient for the whole. But it does not appear that, in fixing the place of their residence, the convenience of the whole was at all consulted, for Boston, being very far from the centre of the colonies, could not be the place most convenient for the whole.
Judging by the act, it may seem this town was intended to be favored, by the
Commissioners being appointed to reside here; and that the consequence of that residence would be the relief and encouragement of commerce; but the reverse has been the constant and uniform effect of it; so that the commerce of the town, from the embarrassments in which it has been lately involved, is greatly reduced.
It was not expected, however, that such an outrage and massacre, as happened here on the evening of the fifth instant, would have been perpetrated. There were then killed and wounded, by a discharge of musketry, eleven of his Majesty's subjects, viz.:
• Mr. Samuel Gray, killed on the spot by a ball entering his head.
• Crispus Attucks, a mulatto, killed on the spot, two balls entering his breast.
• Mr. James Caldwell, killed on the spot, by two balls entering his back.
• Mr. Samuel Maverick, a youth of seventeen years of age, mortally wounded; he
died the next morning.
• Mr. Patrick Carr mortally wounded; he died the 14th instant.
• Christopher Monk and John Clark, youths about seventeen years of age,
dangerously wounded. It is apprehended they will die.
• Mr. Edward Payne, merchant, standing at his door; wounded.
• Messrs. John Green, Robert Patterson, and David Parker; all dangerously wounded.
The actors in this dreadful tragedy were a party of soldiers commanded by Captain
Preston of the 29th regiment. This party, including the Captain, consisted of eight, who
are all committed to jail.
There are depositions in this affair which mention, that several guns were fired at the
same time from the Custom-house; before which this shocking scene was exhibited. Into this matter inquisition is now making.
