The Whiskey Rebellion: 1791 Federal Excise Tax

He also made great internal improvements to Rome and greatly expanded its military before he was assassinated. George Washington was appointed as president by the Electoral College and he took office knowing that everything he did would be used as precedent for future presidents. He showed the power of the Federal Government by personally leading the military to crush the whiskey rebellion (Kotowski 1). He also believed in the separation of powers and that he should have checks and balances with the Legislature and Supreme Court. He was very passionate about his country and said in a letter to Francis Van der Kamp, “I had always hoped that this land might become a safe and

Slaughter divides The Whiskey Rebellion into three principal sections entitled Context, Chronology, and Consequence. The first section begins with a comprehensive assessment of the anti-excise tradition which follows late seventeenth-century British philosophy and traces its progression from Walpole's excise battle in 1733, through the Stamp Act crisis of 1764 and on through the Anti-Federalist account of the tax provisions of the Constitution of 1787. In the second section, Slaughter details the debate over the excise, its implementation and the outbreak of both peaceful and violent opposition to it; opposition that occurred not only in Pennsylvania but along the entire frontier. In his final section, and with a trace of personal bias, Slaughter describes the outbreak of violence in the summer of 1794 for which he holds John Neville largely accountable. Slaughter continues in the final section with Hamilton and Washington deciding to make an example of western Pennsylvania despite the fact that the excise had gone uncollected all along the frontier, and the Watermelon Army fiasco which the Federalists

The Whiskey Rebellion was a giant tax protest that taxed the Southerners on their domestic products such as whiskey. At the time, the Secretary of Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, proposed this excise tax to stop the rebels movement westward. Therefore, the Southerners protested rebelliously towards the Federal Government.

The issues that involved and caused the Whiskey Rebellion was due primarily to major economic and political concerns - westward expansion and a developing government. At the time, many of people were in search of land, and property they could settle on that the recently dismissed British and French could no longer occupy. Available land in the east was diminishing and so in turn, the population begin moving westward. Also, after the Treaty of Paris in 1783 and consequently the end of the American Revolution, created many changes. Lack of authority and resources to affirm authority (Ex. no more mass British army to fight off Indians), had its consequences. Nearly 80 percent of the federal budget was spent battling and removing Indians from the lands along the Ohio River, the most recently settled land by Americans (p.146). In order to compensate for this, Congress passed the tax on whiskey stills which affected mainly poor white farmers. Therefore, westward expansion and the riddance of the Indians, brought forth the infamous Whiskey Rebellion.

In 1791, under the advisement of Alexander Hamilton, congress passed the whiskey tax. This tax, put a twenty-five percent tax on whiskey. Hamilton created this tax in hopes of the federal government gaining more money to help pay of the nation’s debt. However, in doing so, this angered many people, especially farmers in western Pennsylvania, because they distilled the extra grain they had to make whiskey and sell it to make extra income. These small operations in western Pennsylvania rebelled by erecting liberty poles and taring and feathering tax collectors. George Washington, who was president during this time, saw the outburst and decided to take action against the angered farmers. Washington gathered about 13,000 men from the militia to put an end to this rebellion. In doing so, Washington showed that the government help the power over the citizens. In The Whiskey Rebellion, by Thomas Slaughter, he describes different consequences that arise from the whiskey tax. Slaughter presents three main points, which include conflicts between the east and west, two political systems that begin to develop, and the actual rebellion.

What is the first thing someone would think about when whiskey is mentioned? A fun Saturday night out? Maybe, but it they probably did not think about the Whiskey Rebellion of 1791. This Rebellion was resisted by farmers who were accustomed to distilling their excess corn to make alcohol in four small counties in both Pennsylvania and Western Pennsylvania. This Rebellion was met full force with troops set by George Washington. This event was a prime example of the battle between State’s Rights versus Federal Authority as illustrated in the book, Founding Brothers written by Joseph J. Ellis. Even today, the battle continues between the States and the Federal Government regarding the issue of legal marijuana. This issue started 2012 when the

Following the American Revolution, the American nation and states were faced with enormous amounts of debt. To resolve the economic hardships the new nation had been experiencing, leaders turned to taxation as a source of income to resolve debts. Those who lived in the backcountry, which was isolated from society, were often shocked by the newly imposed taxes and most times resented them. Their resentment in relation to the taxes sparked protests and led to large scale rebellions to express their grievances to the government. Both Shay's rebellion and the Whiskey Rebellion were similar in their causes and purpose but they differed in consequences and their significance.

In the preamble of the Constitution, one of the reason given as to why it was drafted is to “insure domestic Tranquility.” Washington’s response to the rebellion proved that the federal government was not going to let anyone threaten the peace in the union. Additionally, Washington’s response showed the power that was granted to the President with in the constitution. Article two section three of the constitution gives the president the responsibility to see that laws are being “faithfully executed”. As members of the United States, the farmers had an obligation to pay the tax whether they agreed or disagreed with it. That is why Washington felt that it was so important it send troops to Pennsylvania to quell the rebellion. In addition to stopping the gathering of rebels, Alexander Hamilton saw it necessary to exert the full force of the law in punishing those who could be proven involved. Even though the tax was repealed, it was a significant stand by the federal government proving they had the power to enforce the laws. In addition to proving the power of the federal government, the whiskey rebellion showed the citizens that they needed to have a more active role in government. If they had an issue with a law, their response could not be to go burn down a house. They needed to leverage the powers of a democracy and the liberties granted in the constitution to create the change they want to

The Whiskey Rebellion was a revolt of settlers in western Pennsylvania in 1794 against a federal excise tax on whiskey then, suppressed by militia called out by President George Washington to establish the authority of the federal government. The main cause of the Whiskey Rebellion was because of the placement of the tax on the domestic goods, This is known to be the first tax placed on a domestic goods in the new world. Due to the rebellion many outcomes became, two of the main outcomes were the power demonstration and the lost in federalist support. First, the government was able to demonstrate the power showing the people that they had the power to stop the rebellions and any action of the rebellions, with the people noticing that the government can withhold the rebellions they are least likely to revolt again. Also, with George Washington sending in the militia the federalist who does not believe in the ideas of why he sent in the militia, there was a massive lost of federalist

In 1791 farmers tarred a tax collector and threatened to burn down houses.The Whiskey rebellion is what Alexander Hamilton called these events, it was farmers mostly in Pennsylvania rebelling against a whiskey tax. It was 1791, farmers rebelled against a whiskey tax, which later Washington led his army to stop, allowing him to empower his newly formed government.

One domestic issue was the southern states were refusing to pay the national debt. The Virginia State Legislature wrote a letter to Congress in hopes of not have to pay the debt. They did this because they had already paid off most of their debt while the northern states paid almost nothing. The southern states thought it was unconstitutional because it was not a job of the government to pay off debt. (Doc. 1) This was the view of the southern states towards the debt. This letters written by the Virginia State Legislature showed strict construction. This was a showing early issue between northern and southern states. The Whiskey Rebellion was a riot that farmers were rebelling against the government. The Whiskey farmers were angry that they were taxed for their whiskey. They thought that the government was targeting them so they refused to pay. President Washington then wrote to the insurgents a proclamation that was announced in 1794. Washington wrote that he will use force if it is necessary, if they do not stop.(Doc. 6) This was written in Washington's view of the issue. This was the first time and only time a president lead an army in battle. This was Washington doing his job as the president in the executive branch. The executive branch was the president and people to implement laws, which was what Washington was doing. This was showing Washington’s power because he passed the

Hamilton was able to persuade Congress into passing a twenty-five percent tax increase on such products. This did not go over all too well in the west, especially concerning small farmers in Pennsylvania. At the time, farmers processed their corn and grain into whiskey, since it was less complicated to transport their crops in liquid form rather than in bulk. Whiskey was also used as barter at this time. In retaliation to this tariff, farmers took it upon themselves to harass the federal tax collectors, and showed their hostility and disdain by stopping judicial proceedings. In response to this, Congress attempted to lift the most severe proclamations of the levy, but this was to no avail in the farmers' eyes. Since a majority of the farmers' used the barter system, they simply could not come up with the money necessary to pay the tax. Their vexation mostly stemmed from their belief that the "unresponsive government" lacked to "understand the hardships they faced" since the government quite clearly did not grasp the concept of a deficiency of affluence (Encyclopedia of American History: Revolution and New Nation, 1761 to 1812). Throughout 1771 to 1773, the farmers' resistance was noticeable although not yet notable until 1774, where they then decided to handle the complication themselves.

By late 1791, President Washington and his administration had created districts, and assigned revenue collectors, and inspectors. All that needed to happen now was to start collecting the whiskey revenue. This, however, is when the problems started.

George Washington was the first president of the United States, the commander in chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and one of the founding fathers of the United States. On January 1791 President George Washington’s Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton proposed a seemingly innocuous excise tax. In the American history, The Whiskey Rebellion was one of the most progressive time in the tax history in the United States. The impact of the Whiskey Rebellion when it began in the 1791s all the way until the 1794s.

Superficially, it may have been deemed an act of censorship to the Constitution’s critics; however, the tax on whiskey initially implemented helped create a better America by reducing the national debt to concentrate money into the securing of the nation’s individual liberties. A new, national militia helped secure the individual’s liberty, preventing other countries from controlling the United States, especially under the proclaimed tyrannical rule of Britain. The so-called censorship of the Whiskey Rebellion helped other individuals claim their liberty after the civil unrest caused by the uprising.