The Shoemaker and The Tea Party
...une. He married the daughter of a Reverend from one of the smallest and poorest churches in Boston and it did not help that her family was also very poor. In addition, he was put in jail for an unpaid debt for a suit that he had bought while trying to court his wife. Hawkes recorded that “After almost a decade on his own, Hewes could not afford his own place” and often found himself and his family living with other family members (29). Furthermore, when it came to belonging to or actually participating in any of Boston’s traditional institutions he did not come close. Hewes did not attend any sort of church although he was baptized and married in one. Most of his life he did not own enough property to pay taxes and therefore did not qualify to vote. He did not attend town meetings, was appointed to no minor position in the town, and belonged to no associations. So it becomes obvious that during his early years George Hewes was a nobody, he had a low-end job, according to public records he hardly existed, and he did not seem to be a part of the city of Boston. To continue, as the events leading up to the revolution began Hewes life headed in a new direction. Between the years of 1768 and 1775, Thatcher remarked, “the shoemaker became a citizen…an active participant in Revolutionary events…and a man who won recognition as a patriot” (33). He seemed to have played a role in three major events, the Massacre, the Tea Party, and the tar and feathering of John Malcolm. First, in the days before the Massacre, he went to court and testified against a soldier that had cheated him out of money and even followed another one home after he had witnessed him stealing a woman’s belongings on the street. He also witnessed the bitter fighting between soldiers and workers and the murder of a young apprentice picketing in front of a store. On the evening of the massacre, Hewes turned out to defend his fellow townspeople against the aggressive soldiers and was even shoved by one of their guns. Once it was over he claimed to Thactcher to have known four of the five men killed. After these events, Hewes was compelled to take political action. The next day he attended a town meeting, became one of ninety-one Boston citizens that gave depositions against the officers, marched in the funeral procession for the victims, and attended other political trials. Hewes turned out for these events to defend his rights as a citizen and acted on the behalf of others and through this he began to become a citizen. Second, when it comes to the Tea Party, Hewes supposedly volunteered and “became the kind of leader for whom most historians have never found a place” (42). According to Hewes memory, he boarded one of the three ships in the harbor that night and quickly was appointed to take control of the movement. In addition, Hewes claims that he stood next to John Hancock while they both threw the tea overboard. When the Tea Party ended Hewes was once again thrown into action. He managed to catch a man trying to steal tea and quickly worked towards his public humiliation. The last revolutionary event that helped to change George Hewe’s life was the tar and feathering of John Malcolm. Through this event Hewes obtained more positive recognition and daringly risked his life. He had attempted to stand up for a small boy being battered by Malcolm and for that reason was beaten senseless by him. In turn Malcolm had him arrested and fought to have him tar and feathered, consequently punishing and ostracizing him. Out of a want for respect, Hewes had began an outrageous event, a poor yet honest man had attempted to stand his ground for a child and won the recognition of the crowd. Through three very important revolutionary events George Hewes had managed to change his status from a citizen, who hardly existed, to a strong and very active citizen in Boston’s political affairs. The last two events that lead to the shaping of Hewe’s life was his participation in the revolution itself and his public perception as a hero. First, although most historians would not have profiled Hewes as someone to participate in the revolution, his role in the previous three events made him not such as ordinary man. In addition, Hawkes expressed that “his experiences transformed him, giving him a sense of citizenship and personal worth” (55). Hewes was once a man referred to as a nobody and when he became a soldier he was considered above average compared to others. But when it came to the majority of his experience Hewes did not have a good one. He spent much time in different branches of the revolution and since he was still a poor man...