Chestertown Tea Party facts for kids
The Chestertown Tea Party was a protest against British taxes. It happened in May 1774 in Chestertown, Maryland. This event was a response to the British Tea Act. Local stories say that patriots in Chestertown copied the famous Boston Tea Party. They supposedly boarded a ship called the Geddes and threw its tea cargo into the Chester River. Today, this event is celebrated every Memorial Day weekend with a festival and a historical reenactment.
Contents
Why the Tea Party Happened
Trouble with England
In 1767, the British Parliament wanted to raise money from the American colonies. They passed the Townshend Acts. These acts put taxes on important goods like paper, paint, glass, and tea. Colonists were very unhappy about these taxes.
Because of the strong protests, Parliament removed most of these taxes on March 5, 1770. But they kept the tax on tea.
Many colonists then refused to buy tea from England. This was called a boycott. Instead, they smuggled tea from other countries or made their own tea. British merchants, especially the East India Company, started losing a lot of money. To help this company, Parliament passed the Tea Act in 1773. This act made colonists even angrier. They felt their freedom was being taken away.
The Boston Protest
On December 16, 1773, a group of angry rebels protested the Tea Act. They called themselves the "Sons of Liberty". Dressed as Mohawk Native Americans, they boarded three ships in Boston Harbor. These ships were full of tea. The Sons of Liberty then dumped 92,000 pounds of tea into the ocean.
King George III was very upset by this "tea party." He ordered the port of Boston to be closed.
The Boston Tea Party was the most famous protest. But it was just the first of many protests against the Tea Act along the Atlantic Coast.
What Happened in Chestertown
News of Boston's port closing reached Chester Town (now Chestertown, Maryland) in the spring of 1774. Chestertown is on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Town leaders quickly held a meeting to decide what to do. The local group of the Sons of Liberty wrote a list of complaints. These became known as the "Chestertown Resolves." They stated that it was against the law to buy, sell, or drink tea shipped from England.
The "Resolves" were officially recorded in the Maryland Gazette newspaper. However, there is no record from that time about tea being thrown into the river. The first mention of the tea dumping appeared much later, at the end of the 1800s. Still, the Chestertown Tea Party is a big part of the town's history and identity.
Soon after the "Resolves" were printed, people in Chestertown heard that a ship, the brigantine Geddes, had arrived with tea. According to tradition, on May 23, 1774, a small group of men boarded the ship. Unlike the Boston protesters, they did this in broad daylight and without disguises. They threw the tea into the Chester River.
How These Events Changed History
The protests in Chester Town, along with those in Boston, Annapolis, and Charleston, SC, changed things. They marked a major turning point between England and the thirteen colonies.
After these "tea parties," it was clear that the colonists strongly opposed taxes they felt were unfair. Destroying British tea was a bold act against Parliament and King George. The King saw it as treason. The colonies, which had been separate, became united. They agreed they would not accept "taxation without representation." This meant they would not pay taxes if they had no say in the British government. They were ready to act strongly to protect this right.
Is the Story True?
Historians have questioned if the Chestertown Tea Party really happened. They haven't found any records of it before the late 1800s. The first time a "tea party" in Chestertown was mentioned was in 1899. It was in a booklet by Fred G. Usilton called History of Chestertown: Gem City on the Chester. Usilton worked for the local newspaper.
Usilton didn't say where he got his story. Even after searching for old letters, diaries, or news reports, his account is the earliest one found. The story became more popular around 1906, Chestertown's 200th anniversary.
In the 1950s, Bill Usilton, Fred's son, brought the story back for the town's 250th anniversary. He added it to a history book. But still, no new proof was found.
Newspapers from 1774 reported protests in New York, Yorktown, and Annapolis. Chestertown was a big trading center then, but colonial newspapers said nothing about tea being dumped there.
However, some parts of the story are true. The ship "Brigantine Geddes" was named after a respected local merchant, William Geddes. It was built in Chestertown in 1773. Old port records show the ship was in the Chesapeake Bay around May 1774. It had just returned from a trip to Europe. So, the ship Geddes was real and was in the area. But it's still not certain if it had tea on board.
Chestertown Tea Party Festival
In the spring of 1968, the people of Chestertown held their first festival. It was to remember the actions of their ancestors. That first event was small. But it included a parade and a historical play of the events.
With a few years off, the Tea Party Festival has happened every Memorial Day Weekend since 1976. This was the Bicentennial year. Today, the festival features a large parade down High Street. Many fife and drum bands march. So do people dressed as Colonial and British soldiers.
Local clubs sell food like cold beer, hot corn, crab cakes, and funnel cakes. Craftsmen from all over the country sell their goods. Musicians, puppeteers, and dancers entertain the crowds. Up to 15,000 people come. The first day ends with everyone gathering by the Chester River. They cheer for the reenactment of the "Storming of the Geddes." People dressed as colonists use the schooner Sultana (a replica of a 1768 ship). They are thrown overboard with the tea.
Other events at the festival include a cocktail party, local music, tours of historic homes, and a fun tradition of tossing a town figure into the river. There are also 10-mile and 5K runs, and a raft race.
