This Day in History: The Whiskey Rebellion
- tara
- Jan 1
- 3 min read
On this day in 1795, George Washington issues a proclamation, calling for a day of public Thanksgiving and prayer. He was relieved and grateful that the so-called Whiskey Rebellion had finally come to an end.
That rebellion had “wantonly threatened” America, Washington knew.
The American government was then still very young, of course, and it had been looking for ways to raise revenue. One of the methods settled upon was an excise tax on whiskey. This tax was imposed in 1791, not long after the Constitution was ratified and our new government was established.
Unfortunately, the burden of this tax fell disproportionately on whiskey distillers along the western frontier. These Americans were already upset because they felt abandoned by the federal government on two other issues: First, they wanted the government to work out a treaty with local Indian tribes, thus lessening frontier violence. Second, they wanted another treaty, this one allowing them better use of the Mississippi River.
Why should such an inattentive federal government now impose a new cost upon them?
Reaction to the tax was violent. Collectors were tarred and feathered. Homes were attacked. Liberty poles were erected. The tax became nearly uncollectable.
Matters got even worse when federal officers began issuing writs demanding that people appear in court. In a July 1794 incident, a group of irate militiamen was trying to force the resignation of a local tax collector, but matters spiraled out of control.
Revolutionary War veteran Major James McFarlane lost his life in that scuffle, and he came to be seen as a martyr. His death only made things worse.
Rebellion sympathizers decided to meet at Braddock’s Field on August 1.
Ironically, this was the same field where George Washington had fought so bravely during the French and Indian War. Now, nearly 5,000 men would meet there and march into Pittsburgh. They intended to capture the city.
That attack was averted, but the incident was the final straw for Washington. On August 2, he met with Cabinet members and Pennsylvania officials.
The circumstances of the rebellion, the President noted, “were such as to strike at the root of all law & order.” He believed that “spirited & firm measures were necessary to rescue the State as well as the general government from the impending danger, for if such proceedings were tolerated there was an end to our Constitutions & laws.” He concluded by declaring “his determination to go every length that the Constitution and Laws would permit, but no further.”
He hoped that Pennsylvania would help.
In the end, Washington issued a proclamation giving the rebels until September 1 to disperse. When they did not do so, he authorized military action. Washington himself led the march of nearly 13,000 militia toward western Pennsylvania in October. The size of the federal army (led by Washington himself!) proved enough to diffuse the remaining rebellion. The army returned home and Washington issued a January 1 proclamation declaring a day of Thanksgiving.
Washington knew that the Rebellion could have brought an end to the fledgling nation. “In such a state of things,” his proclamation stated, “it is in an especial manner our duty as a people, with devout reverence and affectionate gratitude, to acknowledge our many and great obligations to Almighty God and to implore Him to continue and confirm the blessings we experience.”
The proclamation was typical Washington. He believed that America owed its existence to the intervention of Divine Providence. And he expressed that sentiment yet again.
Happy New Year!
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Primary Sources:
Conference Concerning the Insurrection in Western Pennsylvania (Aug. 2, 1794)
Joseph J. Ellis, His Excellency: George Washington (2004)
Tara Ross & Joseph C. Smith, Jr., Under God: George Washington and the Question of Church and State (2008)
George Washington, Proclamation (Sept. 15, 1792)
George Washington, Proclamation (Aug. 7, 1794)
Whiskey Rebellion (Mount Vernon website)
Great Story. Thank You. But please remember, there are some differing viewpoints. I grew up in this area, descended from these early settlers. Nearly every farm had some form of distilling going on, usually only a few gallons a year. Whisky was used as a currency because of a lack of gold or silver on the frontier. The choices to trade our grain or local whisky was to either ship over the mountains to the east, or down the Monongahela, Ohio and Mississippi rivers to the west and south, through wild, unsettled lands, then through a foreign controlled port at New Orleans, then up the east coast. As this was often cost prohibitive, small farmers would either save or tra…