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Chester Town Tea Party
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The Chester Town Tea Party took place in the town we now
call Chestertown in Kent County, Maryland, on May 23, 1774. After the
colonists in Boston dumped tea into the Boston harbor, the British
government closed the port of Boston to punish the people. News
traveled through the colonies slowly back then. The colonists kept in
touch through Committees of Correspondence. They wrote letters to the
other colonies and sent them by horseback.
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Click on the image for a larger map
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When the news of the Boston Tea Party reached Chester
Town, Maryland, the people held a town meeting on May 13, 1774. They
passed a resolution not to buy, sell, or use tea until the British
repealed the tea tax. Then they had their own "tea party."
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Each year the citizens of Chestertown have a
celebration and reenact the events of those exciting days back in
colonial times. Learn more about the Chester Town Tea Party by
visiting this web site.
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As part of their protest, the (male) citizens of Chester Town passed a
series of Resolves (or resolutions) that called for everyone to
boycott (not buy or use) the tea. You can read the Chester Town
Resolves as they were published in the local newspaper, the
Gazette, on May 21, 1774. It is written in old fashioned and
difficult English. Your teacher may need to help you read this news
article.
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