Young Patriots: Inspiring Stories of the American Revolution
Public Library Concord Massachusetts Appreciation goes to other people as well Debra Brass Children's Librarian Cuyahoga County Public Library Cleveland for tracking down needed reference materials Florence and Alton G Gardner former education professors for giving thoughtful consideration to the book while at Chautauqua New York grandson Jonathan Distad and Betsy Gustafson for generously providing computer support grandson Henry Distad and cohorts Jacob Alaburda Ben Newton Alec Riffle and Patrick Scott Shaker Middle School students Shaker Heights Ohio for reading entries and answering a questionnaire As always Marcella s Monday Night Writers group in Cleveland and Elizabeth's critique group in DeLand Florida offered clear insights and constant encouragement Finally we are indebted to our editor Carolyn P Yoder for her frequent reassurances of all's well and her ability to keep this project on track Special thanks to our publisher Kent L Brown Jr writers for young people could have no better advocate J Marcella Anderson Elizabeth Vollstadt
INTRODUCTION S During the first half of the 1700s most American colonists were proud to be British subjects Unlike people in many other countries British citizens had rights that not even the king could violate For example the king could not take a person's property without the approval of Parliament Nor could a person be thrown into jail without being told the charges against him Also through representatives in Parliament British citizens had the right to vote on taxes American colonists took these rights for granted
and were loyal to the mother country When Britain went to war with France over territory in America the French and Indian War many colonists fought alongside the British soldiers George Washington served as an aide to British general Edward Braddock and also commanded a regiment of the Virginia militia The British regulars as the soldiers were called and the American militiamen had their disagreements and often didn't like each other at all but they stood together against their common enemies When the war ended in 1763 however tensions between the colonists and Britain began to grow What caused these tensions One cause was the French and Indian War itself It was very expensive Because the war was fought in North America Britain believed that the American colonies should help pay for it Britain also believed that the colonists should help pay for the troops sent to protect their western borders from the Indians So the British Parliament levied a series of new taxes on the colonists The first was the Sugar Act in 1764 which taxed all sugar and molasses that came into the colonies Molasses was imported from the West Indies and was used for the profitable business of making rum Massachusetts and New York both protested loudly against the tax Massachusetts said that it violated the colony's charter The New York assembly said that there could be no liberty no
happiness no security if the British Parliament could levy such a tax But Britain ignored these protests and passed another tax in 1765 the Stamp Act This act made colonists buy a stamp to place on legal documents such as wills marriage licenses and contracts It also taxed newspapers pamphlets and even playing cards Once again colonists from Virginia to Massachusetts protested the tax Some such as Patrick Henry of Virginia questioned Britain's right to levy such a tax Others protested more violently In New York and Boston demonstrators rioted and attacked the homes and offices of stamp tax collectors The Stamp Act was repealed a year later in 1766 but then Parliament passed the Declaratory Act which reasserted its right to tax the colonies whenever and however it wished In 1767 it passed the Townshend Acts which imposed new taxes on everyday household items such as glass paint paper lead and tea Again the colonists protested arguing that they were n represented in Parliament Taxation without representation is tyranny ecame a rallying cry Samuel Adams of Boston wrote an open letter to all the colonies urging that they boycott British goods until the tax was repealed Other colonists took to the streets rioting against British officials In Boston some officials feared for their lives and asked the British government for protection The government
