In the mid 1700s Britain encountered a problem: the country was struggling to pay for its military expenses. Since England's colonies in the New World were successful, the British government figured, why not tax them? The British also felt that they had invested a lot financially in protecting the colonists. So, in 1765, Parliament passed the Stamp Act, which taxed more than forty kinds of business transactions in the colonies. The colonists were furious. This tax hurt merchants, lawyers, and others. The colonists believed that the British government had no right to tax them, since the colonists' interests were not represented in British Parliament. In protest, many colonists boycotted English products. Wealthy women, for example, wore homespun coats rather than buy imports. Little by little, the colonists became more self-sufficient. A special Stamp Act Congress was held in New York to plan a rebellion. On November 1, when the tax was set to be implemented, all businesses in New York closed. New Yorkers demonstrated and burned a likeness of the British governor. They warned that if he enforced the Stamp Act, he would "die a Martyr to [his] own Villainy." The boycott worked. In 1766, Parliament repealed the Stamp Act. New Yorkers joined other Americans in being overjoyed. But the conflict between England and its American colonies did not end there.
	Home Early New York Coming to America Building the Big Apple Arts & Entertainment Business & Politics New York Living Activities Parents and Teachers PBS Kids Privacy Policy
	BIG APPLE HISTORY is a production of Thirteen/WNET New York. © 2005 Educational Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved.