WHISKEY REBELS

• After George Washington became president in 1789, some veterans of the Revolutionary War continued to be tax protestors, as they were back in the Stamp Act days.

• This time, however, the taxes they were required to pay were authorized by Alexander Hamilton, the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States. Hamilton levied a tax on Whiskey.

• The "Whiskey Rebels" tarred and feathered the tax collectors in 1794 the same way they did back in the 1760s.

• Unless the U.S. Government could effectively collect taxes, the Government would surely not be able to function.

DECISION: You are president George Washington. What do you do about the tax evaders?

Click here to find out what George actually did