CONTENT WARNING
Materials in the Library of Virginia’s collections contain historical terms, phrases, and images that are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and dehumanizing references to race, ethnicity, and nationality; enslaved or free status; physical and mental ability; and gender and sexual orientation.
Context
During the 1760s, many Americans came to believe that the British government was imposing unfair taxes on goods coming into the colonies. Parliament levied its first direct tax on the colonists in 1764 to help pay for the costs of fighting the Seven Years' War (also known as the French and Indian War). The Sugar Act levied taxes not only on sugar, but also on wine, textiles, and coffee. It restricted trade between Americans and non-British merchants. In addition, it gave British officials the power to try suspected smugglers outside of the traditional justice system. A year later, Parliament passed the Stamp Act, which taxed paper goods, including newspapers, all legal documents, and playing cards. Although Parliament repealed the Stamp Act, it passed the Townshend Acts (named for the Chancellor of the Exchequer) in 1767. These acts imposed taxes on tea, paint, paper, and lead.
Americans reacted in many ways. Some wrote pamphlets and editorials, claiming that Parliament was taxing colonists without allowing them representation in the government. Others bypassed British officials and smuggled in the goods they wanted, with varying degrees of success. Others took to the streets. In Boston, a group called the Sons of Liberty protested these taxes and what they saw as the excesses of the British colonial government in allowing trials without juries. The Sons of Liberty movement spread throughout the colonies, including Virginia. Members threatened tax officials, often with physical violence, and harassed those who supported the British government and its officials. Taxation without representation became the rallying cry of many Americans, and the passage of these acts helped shift American sentiments away from Britain and in favor of independence.
A much more common and widespread form of protest against these taxes during this era was the boycott. Many Americans resolved to not purchase taxable goods. This was a protest that many women participated in, as they tended to be the producers of food and clothing in the colonies. As a result of the Sugar Act, women across the colonies began to produce their own cloth, called homespun. Wearing homespun cloth and avoiding the purchase of expensive silks from England became a moniker of patriotism leading up to and through the American Revolution. It was a political statement more than an effort to save money; in fact, in Williamsburg in 1769 one hundred elite women attended a ball in homespun dresses.
This “Address to the Ladies” was published on the second page of the Virginia Gazette in December 1767. The author encourages young women to give up their tea and fancy imported clothes in support of the colonists’ fight against taxation.
Citation: "Address to the Ladies," Virginia Gazette (Purdie and Dixon), Dec. 24, 1767 (p. 2), Library of Virginia.
Note: The newsprint uses a long-S that looks like the letter "f" but is actually an "s." For more information, see our video: Quirks of Old Documents: Spelling, Tildes, Ampersands, and the Long S.
Vocabulary
Bohea: a blend of tea that was so popular the word was used to mean tea
Labradore: a plant used to make herbal tea
Americans reacted in many ways. Some wrote pamphlets and editorials, claiming that Parliament was taxing colonists without allowing them representation in the government. Others bypassed British officials and smuggled in the goods they wanted, with varying degrees of success. Others took to the streets. In Boston, a group called the Sons of Liberty protested these taxes and what they saw as the excesses of the British colonial government in allowing trials without juries. The Sons of Liberty movement spread throughout the colonies, including Virginia. Members threatened tax officials, often with physical violence, and harassed those who supported the British government and its officials. Taxation without representation became the rallying cry of many Americans, and the passage of these acts helped shift American sentiments away from Britain and in favor of independence.
A much more common and widespread form of protest against these taxes during this era was the boycott. Many Americans resolved to not purchase taxable goods. This was a protest that many women participated in, as they tended to be the producers of food and clothing in the colonies. As a result of the Sugar Act, women across the colonies began to produce their own cloth, called homespun. Wearing homespun cloth and avoiding the purchase of expensive silks from England became a moniker of patriotism leading up to and through the American Revolution. It was a political statement more than an effort to save money; in fact, in Williamsburg in 1769 one hundred elite women attended a ball in homespun dresses.
This “Address to the Ladies” was published on the second page of the Virginia Gazette in December 1767. The author encourages young women to give up their tea and fancy imported clothes in support of the colonists’ fight against taxation.
Citation: "Address to the Ladies," Virginia Gazette (Purdie and Dixon), Dec. 24, 1767 (p. 2), Library of Virginia.
Note: The newsprint uses a long-S that looks like the letter "f" but is actually an "s." For more information, see our video: Quirks of Old Documents: Spelling, Tildes, Ampersands, and the Long S.
Vocabulary
Bohea: a blend of tea that was so popular the word was used to mean tea
Labradore: a plant used to make herbal tea
Standards
VS.5, US1.6, VUS.4
Suggested Questions
Preview Activitiy
Looking at Language: What words and phrases stand out to you, and why? To whom was this poem directed? How do you know? Who do you think wrote this letter, and why?
Post-Activities
Analyze: Look a little more deeply at the text of this poem. What assumptions does it make about women, and why? What does it say will happen if women stop purchasing cloth and tea from overseas? What do you think of these arguments?
Social Media Spin: Rewrite this poem for the twenty-first century. Imagine you’re going to promote this boycott on TikTok. How would you appeal to your audience, and why? How might your message change in this century?
Food for Thought: Looking at this poem, could you predict that the colonies would end up rebelling against Britain? What clues do you see in the writer’s disdain for the mother country? What do you think of the Americans’ aversion to being taxed for the first time by Great Britain? Did they have a legitimate complaint? Why or why not?
Looking at Language: What words and phrases stand out to you, and why? To whom was this poem directed? How do you know? Who do you think wrote this letter, and why?
Post-Activities
Analyze: Look a little more deeply at the text of this poem. What assumptions does it make about women, and why? What does it say will happen if women stop purchasing cloth and tea from overseas? What do you think of these arguments?
Social Media Spin: Rewrite this poem for the twenty-first century. Imagine you’re going to promote this boycott on TikTok. How would you appeal to your audience, and why? How might your message change in this century?
Food for Thought: Looking at this poem, could you predict that the colonies would end up rebelling against Britain? What clues do you see in the writer’s disdain for the mother country? What do you think of the Americans’ aversion to being taxed for the first time by Great Britain? Did they have a legitimate complaint? Why or why not?