Local SAR Chapter Celebrates 250th Anniversary of Boston Tea Party

16 December 2023 marked the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, a pivotal event eventually leading to the Revolutionary War. The Tea Party, executed on 16 December 1773 and known at the time as “Destruction of tea” was a protest against the Tea Tax. The Tea Tax was the most recent of a series of taxes imposed on American Colonists by the British Parliament that caused an upwelling of sentiment against Taxation without Representation. The sentiment boiled over with the tossing of over 90,000 pounds of tea into Boston Harbor. Events in Boston triggered other Tea Parties throughout the Colonies, including one in Yorktown, Virginia.

The commemoration took place near the Spirit of Loudoun, the Revolutionary War statue on the grounds of the Loudoun County Courthouse. The Sgt Maj John Champe (SMJC) Chapter Virginia SAR sponsored the event. They were joined by the Col. James Wood II Chapter from the Northern Shenandoah Valley, the Sgt Lawrence Everhart Chapter MD SAR, Elizabeth McIntosh Hammill Chapter DAR, the Ketoctin Chapter DAR, and the Lanes Mill Chapter DAR. Several members of the public joined the commemoration.

SMJC Compatriot David Welker gave a talk about the causes of the Boston Tea Party, the result of tea thrown overboard from the ships Dartmouth, Eleanor, and Beaver, and the aftermath, including a listing of Tea Parties in other colonies.

Three small replica tea chests with the logo of the East India Company were displayed in front of the Spirit of Loudoun. The small chests were similar to small chests containing tea that cost more than bulk tea shipped in large boxes weighing upwards of 400 pounds. The small chests were labeled with the type of tea they would have contained: Hyson, Souchon and Congou.

The group replicated the events of the tea party by pouring cups of tea and asking each person to “Dump the Tea” into blue buckets labeled “Boston Harbor”. After the dumping of tea, coffee was poured and cookies served.

Planning is underway to commemorate the 250th Anniversary of the Yorktown, VA Tea Party on November 7, 1774. Watch for announcements in Leesburg Patch and other local newspapers. The commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of the Boston Tea Party and the Yorktown Tea Party are samples of the many 250th events leading to the celebration of the founding of the United States of America. Join us to celebrate each event, particularly those that happened in Loudoun County.

On 15 June, 2024 the Sgt Maj John Champe Chapter will sponsor the commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of the signing of the Loudoun Resolves. The Commemoration will be at the Loudoun County Courthouse. The 1774 Resolves issued by each county in Virginia was a means of protesting continued “Taxation without Representation” and many other issues Colonists found intolerable. Language used in the Resolves was later echoed in the Declaration of Independence. Join us if you can.

For more information about the SMJC Chapter, and to view video of our events, visit our website at: www.johnchampe-sar.org