EVEN MORE NOTES on the American Revolution!!!!

Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre was the killing of five colonists by British soldiers on March 5, 1770. It was the culmination of civilian-military tensions that had been growing since royal troops first appeared in Massachusetts in October 1768 to enforce the heavy tax burden imposed by the Townshend Acts.

-Protests by colonists who had approached seven British soldiers. They hurled several objects at the soldiers and dared them to fire. “Fire, you bloody-backs, you lobsters. You dare not fire.”

The colonists called this event the Boston Massacre to stir up emotions and influence to go against the British. Colonists such as Samuel Adams used this event as propaganda. Many colonists also began to boycott.

The British responded by repealing the taxes from the Townshend Acts on everything except for tea.

Tea Act
-1773
The British East India Company had a surplus of tea and Parliament passed this act that allowed the company to ship tea to the colonies without having to pay the normal taxes on tea. Also they skipped over colonial merchants and sold the tea directly to shopkeepers at a low price. Their tea was cheaper than the colonial merchants’ tea.

The colonial merchants are upset because they are losing money and they call for an immediate boycott of British goods.

Boston Tea Party
-The British East India Company had the ships dock in the Boston harbor. When the royal governor ordered the ships to be unloaded. The Sons of Liberty, led by Samuel Adams, dressed up as Mohawk Indians and threw 342 boxes of tea into the water. (December 16, 1773)

-Big act of defiance against the British. Word of this spreads throughout of the colonies and the Sons of Liberty are heralded, however, still no one dared to challenge the British for rule.





Intolerable Acts (Quartering Act)
The British pass Coercive Acts in spring 1774. They were very harsh laws for Massachusetts. They wanted to make an example out of Mass (punishing them)
-What were the Coercive Acts or as the colonists called them, The Intolerable Acts?

Closed the Boston Harbor and wouldn’t reopen it until they paid back all the money that was lost from the Tea Party.

Colonists have to house and feed British soldiers (Quartering Act)

MORE American Revolution Notes

Sons of Liberty 1765

Organized in New England (Boston)
They were people who were against the taxes and acts passed by British Parliament
Their goal was to stop the taxes and eventually repeal them
-Started by Samuel Adams
-Hung and burned effigies- rag figures that represent tax collectors or other British officials.
- Tar and feather tax collectors
They urged merchants and colonist to boycott British and European goods


Townshend Acts 1767

Tariffs (taxes) placed upon goods such as tea, paper, glass, and paint
The colonist had to import these items because they did not produce them

The Acts also insured that colonial officials, including governors and judges, would receive their salaries directly from the Crown.


Committee of Correspondence 1772
-Formed in Boston to keep other colonies informed about events that are occurring in Massachusetts. Later on it became a source of information throughout the colonies
-Helped unite the colonies against the British

“No Taxation Without Representation” 1765
-James Otis from Boston declared this during the Stamp Act Congress
-The colonies should not be taxed by Parliament if they could not vote in Parliament

Notes Part 2

I. Tax Protests Lead to Revolt (Rebellion/Revolution)
a. Worried about a rebellion, Britain sends two regiments of troops to Boston.
b. March 5, 1770-Boston Massacre
i. Colonists began insulting British soldiers and throwing things at them
ii. A soldier was knocked down and they began to fire into the crowd, killing 5 colonists
iii. Colonists used this event as propaganda to spread the idea of revolution
1. Led by Samuel Adams
2. Many colonists also began to boycott.
3. The British responded by repealing the taxes from the Townshend Acts on everything except for tea.
c. Samuel Adams revived the Boston Committee of Correspondence
i. Circulated writings about the colonist’s grievances against Britain
d. Tea Act 1773
i. Allowed British East India Company to send tea to the colonies without paying taxes.
ii. Colonial merchants had to pay taxes still
iii. The company was able to sell tea at a lower price, thus hurting colonial businesses
e. Boston Tea Party (December 16, 1773)
i. Colonists (led by Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty) boarded British ships at night and dumped the cargo of tea into the harbor
ii. dressed up as Mohawk Indians and threw 342 boxes of tea into the water.
iii. -Big act of defiance against the British. Word of this spreads throughout of the colonies and the Sons of Liberty are heralded, however, still no one dared to challenge the British for rule.
f. Intolerable Acts (Quartering Act or Coercive Acts)
i. Passed in the spring of 1774
ii. Closed the Boston Harbor
iii. Put Massachusetts under military rule
1. Had to give food and shelter to soldiers
iv. Banned town meetings in Boston
v. They were very harsh laws for Massachusetts. They wanted to make an example out of Mass (punishing them)

Various Classroom notes for American Revolution Project

I. New British Policies
A. Britain planned to tax the colonies to pay for the costly French and Indian War. In 1764, Britain passed the Sugar Act, which lowered the tax on molasses that had been imported from other countries by the colonists. The British govt hoped that lowering the tax would convince colonists to pay the tax instead of smuggling.
B. In 1765 Britain passed the Stamp Act, which placed a tax on all printed materials.
1. Representatives from 9 different colonies wrote a letter to Britain saying they would pay tax that was not approved by their own assemblies
2. NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION
3. In 1766 Britain repealed the Stamp Act
C. In 1767 British Parliament passed the Townshend Acts. Taxed anything imported into the colonies. These imported goods included basic items the colonists could not produce.
1. The colonists responded to the Townshend Acts by boycotting goods.

Approved websites for 8th Grade project

http://www.historycentral.com/revolt/causes.html

http://jc-schools.net/write/ppt/rev-war_files/v3_document.htm

http://www.ushistory.org/march/phila/background.htm

http://www.learner.org/biographyofamerica/prog04/key_events/index.html

http://www.bostonmassacre.net/index.html

http://www.bostonteapartyship.com/

http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/road_q1.html

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/continental/timeline.html

Please avoid websites like wikipedia or answers.com