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| Alamance: Husbandt
and Edmond debating the tax issue. |
Speaking Out Against Taxes
Through the mid 1700s, America was considered Britain's
"child." As more British people came to live in America,
Britain began thinking of ways to get some money from them.
So in October 1763, Britain decided to make a new
rule: they drew a line at the western edge of the east coast. Everyone
who was inside the line would have to pay some new taxes.
The first taxes were for sugar and tea. North Carolinians
didn't mind those too much, but when Britain imposed what they called
"the Stamp Act," they were very angry. Under the Stamp
Act, passed in March 1765, any legal document, newspaper, pamphlet,
and even playing cards had to carry stamps, which, of course, the
colonists had to pay for.
This tax affected North Carolina far more than
the ones on sugar and tea. North Carolina had a major import industry,
so they would have to buy stamps for their shipping documents. So
in October, about 500 angry people gathered near Wilmington to protest
the tax. They named themselves "The Sons of Liberty."
North Carolina's governor, William Tryon, begged the
Sons of Liberty not to protest the Stamp Act. But they refused.
They didn't want Britain to think they didn't mind the taxes.
What
Did North Carolina's Government Look Like?
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