Why Did Papton Boys Decided To Take 14 Captive
Jordan Cantrell
11/1/14
Chapter 10, Prompt 2
5th
During the year 1763, the town of Paxton, in eastern Pennsylvania, had become a hotspot of political and racial unrest. Inhabitants of this town, including many Scots-Irish immigrants, had grown tired of their government’s lack of interest in their vulnerability from outside attacks and inadequate supplement of means for defending themselves. So in December, after a day of heavy drinking, the Paxton Boys decided to take it upon themselves to defend their own. The boys raided a small village of friendly, peaceful Conestoga Indians, killing 6 and taking 14 captive. This led to warrants being sent out for their arrest, but because of fellow frontiersmen who felt the same as they did, there were
no arrests. Soon after, the Paxton Boys began a march on the capital. There were no altercations though, because Benjamin Franklin and other civic leaders decided to meet with the boys. They reached an agreement where the group was disbanded in return for a meeting between officials and the Paxton Boys leaders. The March of the Paxton Boys is significant in many ways. The rebellion was an example of the tensions that had developed between the regions and social classes. It also showed how far along the hostilities between frontiersmen and Indians had developed. Another rebellion that incited changed in Continental America was the Whiskey Rebellion. The rebellion began when an excise tax was placed on all distilled spirits to help pay for the war debt, accumulated from the Revolutionary War. Farmers were unhappy with this new tax because they had been taking their extra crops and turning it into whiskey. This idea had become so popular, that some had begun using whiskey as a bartering tool. In Western Pennsylvania, resistance to the tax had gotten so bad that when a collector can to collect the tax, the man became upset and attacked the home of tax collector General John Neville. The president responded by sending the militias of Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania to disperse the rebellion. The rebellion was broken up soon after that though, so no confrontation with the army took place. This rebellion showed that this new, hatchling of a country had the ability and willingness to call forth and suppress insurgency.
11/1/14
Chapter 10, Prompt 2
5th
During the year 1763, the town of Paxton, in eastern Pennsylvania, had become a hotspot of political and racial unrest. Inhabitants of this town, including many Scots-Irish immigrants, had grown tired of their government’s lack of interest in their vulnerability from outside attacks and inadequate supplement of means for defending themselves. So in December, after a day of heavy drinking, the Paxton Boys decided to take it upon themselves to defend their own. The boys raided a small village of friendly, peaceful Conestoga Indians, killing 6 and taking 14 captive. This led to warrants being sent out for their arrest, but because of fellow frontiersmen who felt the same as they did, there were
no arrests. Soon after, the Paxton Boys began a march on the capital. There were no altercations though, because Benjamin Franklin and other civic leaders decided to meet with the boys. They reached an agreement where the group was disbanded in return for a meeting between officials and the Paxton Boys leaders. The March of the Paxton Boys is significant in many ways. The rebellion was an example of the tensions that had developed between the regions and social classes. It also showed how far along the hostilities between frontiersmen and Indians had developed. Another rebellion that incited changed in Continental America was the Whiskey Rebellion. The rebellion began when an excise tax was placed on all distilled spirits to help pay for the war debt, accumulated from the Revolutionary War. Farmers were unhappy with this new tax because they had been taking their extra crops and turning it into whiskey. This idea had become so popular, that some had begun using whiskey as a bartering tool. In Western Pennsylvania, resistance to the tax had gotten so bad that when a collector can to collect the tax, the man became upset and attacked the home of tax collector General John Neville. The president responded by sending the militias of Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania to disperse the rebellion. The rebellion was broken up soon after that though, so no confrontation with the army took place. This rebellion showed that this new, hatchling of a country had the ability and willingness to call forth and suppress insurgency.