Lenoir Rhyne College - Hacawa Yearbook (Hickory, NC)

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Olive Branch Pcliiion 1775 r li ,vtU1Cl$«»»«« ' ,« ' 5»i; V3 yntA W .i ' . SrfSiSJ Atu itr i a,„«, M „,, tnau, . .. l tt rtra f4uH •J 7 it tefi- Any t Ad i ' .y M i,„f„y ,if tm 6 „, )IUAMl ' ,iM ' - ' r ' y m ■, i;jK,j om:,. , UJ ,., i:$ Thomas Jefferson, suggested that Patrick had come close to treason. In small groups Virginians began to meet at the Raleigh Tavern and the Bruton Parrish Church to form a resolution. With the help of a colonel from Mount Vernon, George Washington, they framed the Virginia Resolutions. Before long all the colonies were adopting resolves, re- fusing taxation without representation. The spring of 1766 saw the repeal of the Stamp Act. But King George, fearing that other British territories would follow America ' s lead and refuse to pay their taxes, decided to make an example of the American colonies by putting them in their place. Every man in England seems to consider himself as a piece of a sovereign over America. Benjamin Franklin 1767 In place of an internal tax, external taxes were levied on such goods as lead, glass, paper, paint and tea. Several other acts, among them the Townshend Act, levying duties and permitting the search and seizure of property, soon became the law. Local government was giving way to control by men paid by the Crown. Grand Union Flag ds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the sep

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C f We cannot, I fear, falsify the pedigree of this fierce people, and persuade them that they are not sprung from a nation in whose veins the blood of freedom circulates. Edmund Burke 17fi6 If one were to isolate a single incident which precipitated colonial America ' s struggle for in- dependence, it would be the Stamp Act of 1765. If there was a point of no return, it occurred with the Olive Branch petition of 1775. This ten-year period marked a time in which a nation was fash- ioned, forged in the heat of frustration on the anvil of the North American continent. An overwhelming problem facing the British Crown in the 1760 ' s was the financial strain placed upon the English people — a strain furthered, in part, by the rnaintenance of British troops in the American colonies. The steady expansion westward called for even more troops to protect and secure this new land. British Stamp Tax Seal 1765 In 1765, by royal proclamation. King George III closed all land west of the Alleghenies to further immigration and expansion. Parliament, in order to force the colonies to pay their fair share for protection, passed the Stamp Act. Although this tax on documents and legal papers amounted only to £60,000 a year, there was instant outcry from the colonies against this internal tax. Many felt that it was one more burden in a list of repressive acts by the Crown. Fear also existed among English creditors that colonial merchants and planters could not meet their debts and pay this additional tax as well. The seeds of discontent were spreading through the colonies farther and faster than anyone ex- pected. New problems of enforcing the taxes, conducting trials, and meting out punishments all brought further alarm. In Boston, Phila- delphia, New York, Charleston, and even in Williamsburg, apprehension began to run high. In a fiery speech before the House of Burgesses May 29, 1765, months before the Stamp Act was to go into effect, Patrick Henry shook the spire of the Capitol with his verbal assault against the Crown. Many cautious men who heard it, including a young lawyer named Rebellious Stripes Flag When in the course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political b

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Caesar had his Brutus, Charles the First his Cromwell, and George the Third may prof it by their example. If this be treason, make the most of it! Patrick Henrv 1765 Through the years of 1767-69, tensions seethed just below the surface. Most of the trouble occurred in the port cities and surrounding areas. The press became more unified and more outspoken for colonial rights. am »y t fi ' a rut In 1769, George Washington, in an address to the House of Burgesses, called for a set of re- solves which stated only Virginians could tax Virginians. Soon Virginia joined Massachusetts in an importation agreement. The colonies showed unity by boycotting English goods. By the spring of 1770, after the tally sheets of British merchants showed a strong decline in revenue, the Townshend Act died. All that re- mained was a small tax on tea. The American patriots still were not satisfied. Skirmishes be- tween the Sons of Liberty and British troops garrisoned in Boston, New York, and Phila- delphia would occasionally break out, but not until March 5, 1770, was the real spark ignited. A British sentry was standing his post that night in front of the Commons House in Boston while local toughs taunted him. Several other guards came to assist him and soon the mob had grown to considerable size. A shot was fired and, before order was restored, several colonials were dead or wounded. What soon became known as the Boston Massacre was a signal fire to militant radicals like Samuel Adams of Boston. Fanning the flames wherever and when- ever possible, the rebels kept alive the spirit of independence. England remained antagonistic to the cause of independence during 1771-72, steering a middle course with the colonies, trying for some reason- able solution. During this time, however, the Sons Governors Mansion Raleigh Tavern arate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Natures God entitle them, a decent rei