Boston, December 1773 — An estimated seven dozen men dumped £10,000 worth of tea in the harbor, unleashing a social, political, and economic firestorm that would culminate in the Declaration of Independence. The Boston Tea Party provoked a reign of terror in the colonies, the turmoil stripping tens of thousands of Americans of their dignity, homes, properties, and birthrights—in the name of liberty and independence. Still, John Adams called the Tea Party nothing short of “magnificent.” Today, few Americans could name even one of the participants in the Boston Tea Party, or any of its important consequences. The acute shortage of tea helped transform Americans into coffee drinkers, but its effects went far beyond culinary tastes. The Tea Party helped spawn a new, independent nation whose citizens would govern themselves.
