I was very cordially and respectfully treated by all present. We had punch wine, pipes and tobacco, biscuit and cheese etc.”
– John Adams describing a meeting at Chase and Speakman’s
”Wealthy colonial merchants like Thomas Hutchinson tended to accept British policy. People of the “middling sort” were struggling through hard economic times.
What’s in a Word?
Caucus Today the word caucus represents a political faction. Possibly the word originated in Boston during this period. Political clubs were forming, often representing economic interests. The Caulkers Club met in the North End, the town’s center for shipbuilding. (Wooden ships used caulking between planks to prevent leaks.) The term “caucus” may be derived from the name of this group.
A soon to be famous Elm tree was visible from the meeting place of the Loyall Nine.
- Old Boston Taverns and Tavern Clubs, by Samuel Adams Drake and Walter K. Watkins
The Loyall Nine
In a counting room at Chase and Speakman’s Distillery,
overlooking a prominent Elm tree, a group began meeting to discuss the new taxes, and organize protests.
Although not wealthy they were substantial citizens.
Two distillers and a sea captain had been shut down for
smuggling. A newspaper editor, Benjamin Edes, would
become a master propagandist. They called themselves
the “Loyall Nine.” Although not a member, Samuel
Adams attended their meetings.
The Boston Gazette and Country Journal
Benjamin Edes was a member of the Loyall Nine. With partner John Gill he produced an influential newspaper that challenged British policy. Th e Boston Gazette and Country Journal began a drumbeat of criticism against the Stamp Act and helped defi ne issues for general readers. Printers feared that the added expense of the tax could actually put them out of business. In an early version of social media they also printed broadsides and announcements that attracted crowds to demonstrations and protests.
Several members . . .
This Parliamentary report from 1751 concluded “effectual remedies must be found to keep the British trader in North America within bounds.” With historical hindsight, perhaps more thought should have been given to this issue.
- Massachusetts Archive
A facsimile of . . .
The Commonwealth Museum’s Revolution Gallery displays a facsimile of an eighteenth century printing press.
- Library of Congress
The Boston Gazette and Country Journal . . .
The Boston Gazette and Country Journal encouraged Stamp Tax protests.
- Massachusetts Historical Society