Tossing the tea! Photo courtesy of The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
Immerse Yourself in History at the Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
By Debbie Stone
There was something cathartic about hoisting a chest of tea into the sea. Though it wasn't a real chest — this one was waterproof — it still felt good. We had just heard Samuel Adams' speech in the Meeting House protesting the tax on tea, and he riled us up. The emotions were high as we marched onto one of the tea ships and took turns dumping the tea. It didn't take much imagination to picture this action taking place some 250-plus years ago.
Listen to Big Blend Radio” Global Adventures” Podcast with Debbie Stone. In the episode below, she discusses her experience at the Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum.
December 16, 1773, is a date etched in the history of our country, as on this day, the Boston Tea Party took place. It was the first major act of defiance to British rule in the American colonies and is considered the single most important event leading to the American Revolution.
Several hundred Colonial men, or Patriots, amassed at Boston Harbor, and in an act of resistance against the unfair Tea Act, they threw 340 chests of British East India Company Tea into the water. Weighing more than 92,000 pounds, the tea had a value in today's dollars of approximately $1.5 million.
Though most Americans are familiar with this event, many are probably a bit hazy on the details. I know I was, having studied this period in history eons ago when I was in elementary school.
Enter The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum, one of Boston's most popular and award-winning attractions. This floating museum is actually situated over the same body of water where the Boston Tea Party happened, giving it extra credence and star power.
The museum floats upon the same body of water made famous by the Tea Party. Photo courtesy of The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
On a recent trip to the city, I put the museum on the top of my list, having read rave reviews about the place. I knew it offered an immersive experience, but I was quite impressed by the dynamic nature of the tour, and it exceeded my expectations tenfold.
The tour includes live actors (who are great at staying in character), re-enactments, high-tech interactive exhibits, authentically restored tea ships, 18th-century artifacts, and an award-winning film, "Let It Begin Here." It held my attention from the start when I was given a card of an actual person, Joshua Wyeth, who participated in the Boston Tea Party on that fateful day.
Begin the tour in the Meeting Room and get prepped for the experience. Photo courtesy of The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
Joshua Wyeth, I was informed, was a fifteen-year-old blacksmith's apprentice working under known troublemaker Obadiah Whiston. He and his fellow patriots discussed different methods to prevent the tea from landing in Boston, including burning or sinking the ships. He decided that boarding the vessels and dumping the tea might be the only reasonable solution and is credited as one of the first to label the event a "Tea Party." Joshua was also one of the first participants to admit his role in the uprising, proud of having done what it took to defend his liberties.
The museum features two of the three historically accurate replica 18th-century ships, the "Beaver" and the "Eleanor," which took part in the Boston Tea Party. During the tour, you'll get the opportunity to spend some time on one of the ships and learn what life was like on such a vessel. Seeing the crew's and captain's quarters made me shudder, as I could picture just how claustrophobic the accommodations were for those at sea.
We were then guided indoors to hear the viewpoints of two women, one a Tory and one a Patriot, having a heated discussion about the events at Griffin's Wharf. This is cleverly done through the use of innovative holographs. Our guide added occasional sideline comments to the dialogue, acting in her role as a Patriot woman of the times.
Vial of tea is one of the 18th century artifacts on display. Photo courtesy of The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
In the next phase of the tour, we got to see the Robinson Tea Chest, the only known tea chest still in existence from the original Boston Tea Party. The chest has been protected and preserved for more than two centuries.
Back in 1773, a young apprentice, John Robinson, found the chest in the sand and carried it home. His mother knew that possession of anything from the Tea Party would be considered treason and have dire consequences. The family kept it safe, eventually bringing it to New York, where it was then passed down through generations. Finally back in Boston, it now lies over the same body of water in which it was thrown overboard.
Also on display is a vial of tea believed to be from the Boston Tea Party. Purportedly, this vial can be traced back to the Reverend Thaddeus Mason Harris, a clergyman who lived in Dorchester, MA. As a five-year-old boy, he gathered some of the tea when it was thrown overboard and it subsequently ended up on a beach.
The family bottled the tea in a glass vial, and years later, Harris' mother passed it on to her daughter. It continued to be passed on through the years, landing at Old North Church, Boston's oldest surviving church building. This place, you might recall, became famous when two men climbed it and hung two lanterns — one if by land, two if by sea — as a signal from Paul Revere that the British were coming.
Make sure to stop in Abigail's Tea Shop after your tour. Photo courtesy of The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
The tour includes another fascinating conversation, this one between King George III and Sam Adams, in the museum's portrait gallery. Though they never met in real life, the pair's personal correspondence is used for a dramatized debate. Once again, the museum's state-of-the-art technology is utilized to create clever "talking portraits" representing the men.
The film, "Let It Begin Here," concludes the tour. It colorfully details the events leading to the American Revolution and the "shot heard round the world" in Lexington.
After the tour, head on up to Abigail's Tea Room, a delightful spot with water views. Here you can enjoy a selection of beverages and food, including yummy baked goods, soups, salads, and sandwiches. Opt to do a tea tasting of the five tea blends thrown overboard during the Tea Party to complete your experience.
Debbie Stone is an established travel writer and columnist, and regular contributor for Big Blend Radio and Big Blend Magazines, who crosses the globe in search of unique destinations and experiences to share with her readers and listeners. She’s an avid explorer who welcomes new opportunities to increase awareness and enthusiasm for places, culture, food, history, nature, outdoor adventure, wellness, and more. Her travels have taken her to nearly 100 countries and all seven continents.
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