Alaska News • • 6 min
White House: Road to Liberty: The Boston Tea Party, America's Greatest Heist
video • Alaska News
They tell this story as if it were a riot.
A crowd that lost control. But nothing about that night was chaotic.
It was the perfect plan.
When the Dartmouth glided into Boston Harbor, she brought with her the first tea under the Tea Act. Taxed by Parliament without our consent. No vote, no seat, no say.
Drop anchor! That's what we meant when we said "no taxation without representation." They weren't just empty words. It was a line we refused to let them cross.
Granted, the tea was cheaper. With the tax buried inside. If even one chest was landed, that tax was owed. The law gave us 20 days before customs men could seize the cargo, unload the tea themselves, and collect the tax by force. So we waited, petitioned, hoped for the men who sold the tea to step aside, or for the governor to intervene.
The governor will not send the ships back. The Coast Siamese will not resist.
Sign! Every plan has a mastermind, and this plan was as wild as the mastermind himself. Now, I won't name names. Secrecy was essential for success. These meetings can do nothing more to save the country.
But what are we to do?
You want to sneak onto a ship and rob the British East India Company?
No, I want you to hit all three.
You don't take a fortune with a mob.
You build a crew. Strong arms. Steady hands. The chest needed breaking. He'd do it clean.
He knew cargo. Knew how ships were loaded. And how fast they could be emptied.
And me, a shoemaker by trade, but bosun for the Dartmouth.
Soldiers had been pulled back to the fort. That gave us a window. 3 Hours. Get in, toss the chests, get out. We must be organized.
The rules were set before we touched a ship. No drinking. No fighting. Oh, come on! No damage.
But to the tea.
Your key, sir.