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 The rebellion occurred shortly after the Articles of Confederation had been replaced by a stronger federal government under the United States Constitution in 1789. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Metropolitan Museum of Art New York Elevation The Metropolitan Museum of Art, often referred to simply as the Met, is one of the worlds largest and most important art museums. ... Washington is a city in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States. ... The South Tenth Street Bridge over the Monongahela River in Pittsburgh in 2005 The Monongahela River in Fairmont, West Virginia in 2006 Monongahela River Scene, 1857[11] Opekiska Lock and Dam on the Monongahela River near Fairmont, West Virginia at river mile 115 The Monongahela River (pronounced , also known locally... The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, commonly known as the Articles of Confederation, was the first governing document, or constitution, of the United States of America. ... Wikisource has original text related to this article: The United States Constitution The United States Constitution is the supreme law of the United States of America. ...

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. In 1791 Hamilton convinced Congress to approve taxes on distilled spirits and carriages. Hamilton's reasons for the tax were several: he wanted to pay down the national debt, but 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 United States Secretary of the Treasury is the finance minister of the Federal Government of the United States. ... Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757[1]—July 12, 1804) was an Army officer, lawyer, Founding Father, American politician, leading statesman, financier and political theorist. ... This article is about military actions only. ... 1791 (MDCCXCI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

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. “Taxes” redirects here. ... A 19th-centure example of barter: A sample labor for labor note for the Cincinnati Time Store. ...

The tax on whiskey was bitterly and fiercely opposed among the cohee on the frontier from the day it was passed. Western farmers considered it to be both unfair and discriminatory, since they had traditionally converted their excess grain into liquor. The whiskey thus produced could easily be transported and sold while the grain itself could not. 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. Tuckahoe was a term used during the 18th and 19th centuries to describe a cultural group, i. ... The Stamp Act of 1765 (short title Duties in American Colonies Act 1765; 5 George III, c. ... John Trumbulls Declaration of Independence, showing the five-man committee in charge of drafting the Declaration in 1776 as it presents its work to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia The American Revolution refers to the period during the last half of the 18th century in which the Thirteen...

From Pennsylvania to Georgia, the western counties engaged in a campaign of harassment of the federal tax collectors. "Whiskey Boys" also made violent protests in Maryland, Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Georgia.^[3] This article is about the U.S. State. ...

By the summer of 1794, tensions reached a fevered pitch all along the western frontier as the pioneer/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. 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. South Park Township is located in the southern part of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. ... City nickname: The Steel City Location in the state of Pennsylvania Founded 1758 Mayor Tom Murphy (Dem) Area  - Total  - Water 151. ... The Bostonians Paying the Excise-Man, 1774 British propaganda print referring to the tarring and feathering of Boston Commissioner of Customs John Malcolm four weeks after the Boston Tea Party. ...

George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, remembering Shays' Rebellion from just eight years before, decided to make Pennsylvania a testing ground for federal authority. 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. The rebel force they sought was likewise composed of Pennsylvanians, Virginians, and possibly men from other states.^[4] George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799)[1] led Americas Continental Army to victory over Britain in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), and in 1789 was elected the first President of the United States of America. ... Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757[1]—July 12, 1804) was an Army officer, lawyer, Founding Father, American politician, leading statesman, financier and political theorist. ... Shays rebellion was an armed uprising in Western Massachusetts from 1786 to 1787. ... is the 219th day of the year (220th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1794 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... The Militia Law of 1792 was signed into law by President George Washington in 1792 to give the President authority to call out the National Militia, as at the time under the Articles of Confederation, the ineffective fledgling United States government did not provide for a standing national Army. ...

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, Pennsylvania) in October of 1794. 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." Henry Lee III (January 29, 1756 - March 25, 1818), American general, called Light Horse Harry, was born near Dumfries, Virginia. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Monongahela is a city in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. ...

Only two were actually arrested and jailed: judge Robert Philson and devout Quaker Herman Husband. Philson was released by Washington, but Harmon died in jail before he could be released. Robert Philson (abt 1759 - July 25, 1831) was born in Tyrone County, Northern Ireland, and emigrated to Pennsylvania with his uncle John Fletcher. ... The Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as Quakers, or Friends, is a religious community founded in England in the 17th century. ... [1] Herman Husband (1724–1795) was a farmer, radical, pamphleteer, and preacher. ...

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, George Ankeny, Smith, of Quemahoning township; Peter Augustine, James Conner, Henry Everly, Daniel McCartey, William Pinkerton, and Jonathan Woodsides of Turkeyfoot township.^[5]

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. In essence, Tom the Tinker illuminated the point that compliance with the law was as contemptible an action as those who were collecting the whiskey tax. William Hogeland has described the situation thus: A tax collector is a person who collects unpaid taxes from other people or corporations. ...

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. 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.^[6] The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the PG, is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. // The paper began publication on July 29, 1786, with the encouragement of Hugh Henry Brackenridge as a four-page weekly, initially called The Gazette. ...

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^[7], was Tom the Tinker, or perhaps the author of the letters attributed to Tom, but this has never been proven. 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. 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."^[7] Shays rebellion was an armed uprising in Western Massachusetts from 1786 to 1787. ... Ned Lud is the person that forms the basis for the character of King (or Captain) Ludd who was supposedly the leader and founder of the Luddites. ... The Luddites were a social movement of English textile artisans in the early nineteenth century who protested — often by destroying textile machines — against the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution, which they felt threatened their livelihood. ...

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 (March 16, 1751 – June 28, 1836), was an American politician and the fourth President of the United States (1809–1817), and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. ... Combatants Great Britain United States Commanders Robert Ross George Cockburn Unknown Strength 4,250 Unknown The Burning of Washington is the name given to the burning of Washington, D.C., by British forces in 1814, during the War of 1812. ... This article is about the U.S. – U.K. war. ...

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. 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.^[8] Additionally, the rebellion and its suppression helped turn people away from the Federalist Party and toward the Democratic Republican Party. 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. Official language(s) English[1] Capital Frankfort Largest city Louisville Area  Ranked 37th  - Total 40,444 sq mi (104,749 km²)  - Width 140 miles (225 km)  - Length 379 miles (610 km)  - % water 1. ... This article is about the U.S. state of Tennessee. ... For other uses, see Limestone (disambiguation). ... Bourbon bottle, 19th century Oak casks in ricks used store and age bourbon. ... The Federalist Party (or Federal Party) was an American political party in the period 1793 to 1816, with remnants lasting into the 1820s. ... The Democratic-Republican Party, founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison as the Republican party (not related to the present-day Republican Party) in 1792, was the dominant political party in the United States from 1800 until the 1820s, when it split into competing factions, one of which became the... 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.^[9]

References in popular culture

Susanna Rowson used the Whiskey Rebellion as inspiration for a musical farce for the stage called The Volunteers. The lyrics were set to music by Alexander Reinagle of the New Company, which performed the play in Philadelphia in 1795. Susanna Rowson, née Haswell (1762-1824) was a British-American novelist, poet and religious writers. ... Alexander Reinagle (April 23, 1756 - September 21, 1809) was an English and American composer during the late 1700s and early 1800s. ... For other uses, see Philadelphia (disambiguation) and Philly. ...

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. As a result, the United States becomes a libertarian utopia called the North American Confederation. Albert Gallatin's intervention in the Whiskey Rebellion comes as a result of an additional word in the Constitution, which in the parallel universe contains the phrase "deriving its just powers from the unanimous consent of the governed". L. Neil Smith (full name Lester Neil Smith III, also known by his nickname El Neil or The Sage of the High Plains) is a libertarian science fiction author and political activist. ... The Probability Broach is the first novel (1981) by science fiction writer L. Neil Smith. ... Alternative history or alternate history can be: A History told from an alternative viewpoint, rather than from the view of imperialist, conqueror, or explorer. ... Abraham Alfonse Albert Gallatin (January 29, 1761 – August 12, 1849) was a Swiss-American ethnologist, linguist, politician, diplomat, Congressman, and the longest-serving United States Secretary of the Treasury. ... George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799)[1] led Americas Continental Army to victory over Britain in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), and in 1789 was elected the first President of the United States of America. ... See also Libertarianism and Libertarian Party Libertarian,is a term for person who has made a conscious and principled commitment, evidenced by a statement or Pledge, to forswear violating others rights and usually living in voluntary communities: thus in law no longer subject to government supervision. ...

Richard D. Fuerle composed a light opera about the Whiskey Rebellion called "Rebellion!", which was recorded by professional singers.

See also

• American Whiskey Trail
• Moonshine

The American Whiskey Trail[1] is a cultural heritage and tourism initiative of the Distilled Spirits Council in cooperation with historic Mount Vernon. ... Revenue men at the site of moonshine stills, Kentucky, 1911 or earlier For other uses, see Moonshine (disambiguation). ...

References

Scribner is a city located in Dodge County, Nebraska. ...

Bibliography

• Leland Baldwin (1939). Whiskey Rebels: The Story of a Frontier Uprising. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press.
• Jacob E. Cooke (July 1963). "The Whiskey Insurrection: A Re-Evaluation." Pennsylvania History, 30, pp. 316-364.
• Richard H. Kohn (December 1972). "The Washington Administration's Decision to Crush the Whiskey Rebellion." Journal of American History, 59, pp. 567-584.
• Thomas P. Slaughter (1986). The Whiskey Rebellion: Frontier Epilogue to the American Revolution. Oxford University Press. # ISBN 0-19-505191-2
• W. Thomas Mainwaring, ed. (Fall 1994), "The Whiskey Rebellion and the Trans-Appalachian Frontier." Topic: A Journal of the Liberal Arts, 45 (special 93-page compilation of five papers presented at the April 1994 Whiskey Rebellion Bicentennial Conference, Washington and Jefferson College, Washington, Pa.)
• William Hogeland (2006). The Whiskey Rebellion: George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and the Frontier Rebels Who Challenged America's Newfound Sovereignty. Scribner.
• Murray N. Rothbard (September 1994). "The Whiskey Rebellion: A Model For Our Time?". Free Market (Volume 12, Number 9)