We have been talking about the coercive acts that Great Britain passed as punishment for the Boston Tea Party. The first one was enacted 31 March 1774. It is called the Boston Port Act. It was one of five measures that were enacted. June 1 1774 was the date which that first coercive (called intolerable acts by the colonists) act was enforced.
From Wikipedia:
Royal Navy warships subsequently began patrols at the mouth of Boston Harbor to enforce the acts. The British Army also joined in enforcing the blockade, and Boston was filled with troops led by Commander-in-Chief Thomas Gage. Colonists protested that the Port Act penalized thousands of residents and violated their rights as subjects of George III. As the Port of Boston was a major source of supplies for the citizens of Massachusetts, sympathetic colonies as far away as South Carolina sent relief supplies to the settlers of Massachusetts Bay. So great was the response that the Boston leaders boasted that the town would become the chief grain port of America if the act was not repealed.
June 1 was widely observed as a day of fasting and prayer throughout the 13 colonies: bells being tolled, flags placed at half-mast, and houses draped in mourning. That was the first step in the unification of the Thirteen Colonies since they now had a cause for which to work together.
The First Continental Congress was convened in Philadelphia on September 5, 1774 to co-ordinate a colonial response to the Port Act and the other Coercive Acts.
Our DAR chapter will be hosting a mock Continental Congress in our Cabin the third Saturday of September in celebration of this first big step in the process of gaining freedom from Great Britain.
