On this day in 1773, patriots in Boston, led by Sam Adams, were organizing the Boston Tea Party. An estimated crowd of 7,000 pressed into Old South Meeting House (the pews are a later addition) and jammed the surrounding streets. The heart of the issue was "no taxation without representation." The provocation was the arrival of the Dartmouth on November 28, the first of three British ships to arrive loaded with crates of tea that would be subject to tax. Custom officials had

If you want to understand the challenges and hardships involved in the early days of the American Revolution, I highly recommend the photo-essays on The Origins of American Independence, Sam Adams - Mastermind of the Revolution and Henry Knox - Washington's Favorite General. You can find them here . Thomas Jefferson said of Sam Adams, "I always considered him more than any other member, the fountain of our more important measures." #AmericanRevolution Three figures on left, R

Washington's farewell to his officers at Fraunces Tavern in lower Manhattan On December 4, 1783, about a week after the British troops evacuated New York, Washington arranged to say farewell to his officers at Fraunces Tavern on Pearl St. in lower Manhattan. The always dignified commander-in-chief was overwhelmed with emotion. He filled a glass with wine and toasted his officers saying, "With a heart full of love and gratitude, I now take leave of you. I most devoutly wish th