1773, Britain passed the Tea Act. By this Act, about 17 million pounds of surplus tea (assets of the East India Company, India) was proposed to be sold in America, by under selling it. Since the tea would be sold at an extremely cheap rate by bypassing the traders, the wholesalers in America were going to be seriously affected. For this reason, the Act was fiercely resisted by the colonies. Since British tea was already being boycotted because of the heavy duties on it, the Act in America was seen as a bribe from the British Authorities. In Boston, the opposition against the Tea Act took a dramatic form. Here some men dressed as Indians boarded a ship containing tea, at the Harbor and dumped the entire consignment into the sea. This incident is known as the Boston Tea Party. While the people in Boston rejoiced, the British Parliament passed certain laws to punish the colony. They passed what the colonists popularly called the Intolerable Acts in 1774. Under these Acts, the Boston port was closed until due compensation was paid to the government (London) for the lost tea. Further, the British troops were re-stationed in the city.

The men who dumped tea into Boston Harbor were from many different backgrounds. About one-third of them were skilled artisans such as carpenters, masons and shoemakers. A much smaller number were merchants, doctors, clerks, and the like. The occupations of all the participants are not known, but the majority were probably apprentices and common laborers, Alongside participants of English descent were men of Irish, Scottish, French, African and Portuguese origins. The Tea Party was also the work of young people. Two-thirds of those whose ages were known were under 20, including 16 teenagers. Only nine are known to have been 40 years old or older. Most of the men were from Boston and vincity, but some came from as far away as Worcester and Maine. Listed below are named of patriots recorded to have been involved in the Tea Party protest. Not all of the participants are known, as some carried the secret of their participation to the end of their days. Do you have a Revolutionary ancestor?

Author: Marc Kornblatt
Illustrator: Ernie Colón
First Published: September, 1987
ISBN: 0-553-15529-6
Length: 80 pages (plus instructions and data)
Number of Endings: 1
Plot Summary: Your mission is to visit the Boston Tea Party and retrieve one of the tomahawks used during the event.