The Whiskey Rebellion and the Whiskey Tax

Meaning when a tax is placed on a certain item, whiskey, in this demand model the producer, the farmers, would pay most of the tax. At the time the federal government saw whiskey as a luxury and so placed the tax on the distillers, raising the price of production in return decreasing the amount produced. They saw they could pay off their debt, by taxing the whiskey, and the producers of whiskey would pay for the debt for them. Therefore, the National debt incurred during the Revolutionary war and, the supply and the demand of whiskey are related. It was shown that only the distillers who produced less would pay more because of the tradeoff of equity end efficiency, meaning that because of the debt from the war, the government needed a way to pay for the debt and taxed whiskey. Concluding that the supply and demand elasticities of whiskey are completely due to the taxation put on the whiskey to pay for the

Rum distillers, sensing the opportunity to make a profit, imported molasses from the West Indies and made rum themselves, instead of relying on expensive middlemen. Britain tried to get in on the profit, imposing a tax in the Molasses Act of 1733, which would have cut New England’s economic output significantly. However, the act backfired; distillers smuggled molasses to avoid the tax, laying the foundation for a boycott of British goods during the American Revolution. The British, perhaps ignoring lessons learned from the Molasses Act, passed the Sugar Act in 1764, at the end of the French and Indian War. Reasoning that America should foot the bill for most of its war costs, the British “decided to strengthen and enforce the Molasses Act” (Standage 119). Americans were unhappy, and organized the Sons of Liberty to protest the tax, decrying “taxation without representation”. The British added more and more taxes, only adding flames to the fire. Americans broke under the onslaught of taxes and decided to revolt, starting the American Revolution, which had profound effects on world history. While the tax on tea was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back, and, thusly, is “associated with the start of the revolution” (Standage 120), the simmering flames of a revolution that would create one of the most powerful countries in world history started when the British imposed a tax on sugar, used to make

Towards the end of the 16th century, the United States government experienced continuous changes in laws(taxes) and several problems(battling and removal of Indians) associated with westward expansion. Conflict was created in response to the rising taxes issued by the government on goods such as whiskey. Most affected by the heavy taxation were the creators and distributors of whiskey - the average poor white farmer. An incident that occurred in 1794 involving enraged farmers in western Pennsylvania, threatened the tax collectors lives as well as the authority of the government. This incident came to be known as the 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.

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.

As one of the first revolts following the Revolutionary War, the Whiskey Insurrection (1791-1794) was one of the first instances of insurgence against the new American federal government. After the U.S. Congress passed an act that placed an excise tax on distilled spirits in 1791, protesters emerged in the western Pennsylvania counties of Allegheny, Washington, Westmoreland, and Fayette. Opposition towards the excise tax gradually became more hostile, with the attacks physical attacks on tax collector, primarily on the residence of tax collector John Neville, as the main turning points. While it was mainly contained in western Pennsylvania and surrounding areas, this event bore a greater significance that the Washington administration knew would dictate future perceptions of the federal government’s authority. This paper will seek to investigate the significance of the Whiskey Rebellion in the establishment and execution of federal power during the infant years of the United States.

Hamilton himself anticipated the outcry beforehand noting the tax would “produce clamor, evasion, and war on our own citizens to collect it.” Washington’s Cabinet also felt the “clamor” as Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson denounced the tax, stating, “It would arouse murmurings against taxes and tax-gatherers…could only be enforced by arbitrary and vexatious means.” This paper will examine the nature of the dissatisfaction with Hamilton’s tax, the increasingly vociferous and progressively violent protest against the tax that culminated in the Whiskey Rebellion, the discord between Hamilton and Jefferson that bedeviled Washington’s administration and Washington’s eventual decision to use a militia force—greater in number than any army he commanded during the Revolutionary War—against those spurred to rebellion by, in his estimation, treasonous democratic societies, in order to “reduce the refractory to a due subordination to the

I’m writing to express support of george washington in the taxation of whiskey in pennsylvania. I am taking George washington’s side because the nation was in debt. So putting a tax on whiskey would pull us out of national debt. Although the tax on farmer's whiskey had little to no notice, they still need to support their country to be save.

As everyone knows, there is always something going on within the government that we agree with or disagree with. This was no different back in the 1700’s and 1800’s. It was a very tough time for the American people as the American Revolution had just ended. America was in serious debt, and someone had to come up with a way to fix this issue. The new Government of the United States was trying to establish itself, and the excise tax on distilled spirits seemed to be a good start. While taxation is never popular amongst American Citizens, the duties that were imposed by the taxes resulting in the Whiskey Rebellion were a necessary evil for the American Economy.

I am writing to you in order to express my admiration and gratitude. You have proven to be worthy of the title and job of the first President of the United States. I am saying this in part due to your recent decisions and actions over the Whiskey Rebellion. Seeing how you put down the Whiskey Rebellion successfully without the use of force, my admiration for you grew. This display of power was a sound decision because it demonstrated your ability to have an army ready to defend the country’s laws without needlessly resorting to violence quickly. This will definitely set a positive example for those that come after you. So far, President Washington, you have done a great job as the first president in regards to your exercise of power. I sincerely

The result of the prohibition had unforeseen aftermath. With the repeal of alcohol came the end of tax revenue. Many states relied on excise taxes to fund their budgets.

The establishment of a new government after the American Revolution was believed to create a prosperous, peaceful nation. However, it was the start of the foreign conflict and a fragile country. As the nation ratified the constitution, many feared or questioned the government’s authority, so the constitution tried to provide allegiance by adopting the bill of rights to secure liberty and property. (Oakes, et, al, 221-222) This created a satisfied nation, but the government was still weak since it was fairly new. As a weak form of government, Alexander Hamilton inflicted a whiskey tax to great revenue for the debt of the war. As a result, many farmers revolted against this excise tax because it violated their consent. They felt that the government was another version of the British tyranny. This event gave little to no legitimacy to the government due to the lack of trust. Thus, among the many reasons why a weak government caused the nation to become fragile.

des concise, clearly written insights into the seeds of temperance movements in the late eighteenth century, which gained steam over the next century and finally reached a tipping point in the early twentieth century as an organized, powerful political movement. Of course, the “grand social revolution that was supposed to forever end drunkenness, reduce crime, and make life better for America’s families” did almost precisely the opposite, and the section on Al Capone will satisfy readers hungry for the gangster-warfare side of Prohibition.

The United States congress and senate was compelled to create and pass the eighteenth amendment in 1917 and ratify it in 1919. After the ratification of the eighteenth amendment the production, sales, and transport of the intoxicating liquids became illegal on the federal level apart from a few applications such as pharmaceutically prescribed alcohol and religious ceremonies. The Volstead act is what allowed federal authorities to ensure the enforcement of prohibition was followed on the national level by conducting searches and seizures if necessary . Unfortunately for the Volstead act had little to no impact on preventing the circulation and consumption of alcohol due to bootleggers taking advantage of the system. Even though the laws that prohibited the circulation of alcohol were enforced on a federal level and had the support of many politicians and American citizens the main goal was to obtain a safe and reasonable method in which America could avoid another conflict. President Wilson’s Fourteen points was a prime example that sought to prevent involvement in another war and to unite the

Even though this may seem irrelevant, in actuality it is very important, since it returned the lower classes back to consuming beer. Since the higher classes could not control their drinking habits, they turned back towards beer as a solution to their problem. For they were seen creating acts, which prohibited spirits and lowered the price of beer, as well as even reestablished the public houses to accommodate them with a place to drink. In doing so, the upper class was not only able to control the drinking habits of the working class, but also reestablish beer itself. With this, it is clearly apparent that the social hierarchy system in England during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries is responsible for transforming beer into the ‘social drink’ it is today.