As American history teachers, particularly US I teachers, we always teach about a tax on tea. How often, though, do we question “Why tea?” How the world would a bunch of people in our present-day-coffee-drinking-American-society understand why *tea* of all things led to violent, destructive rioting. The backlash against taxation on tea and British control of the tea market was so explosive that it forced Britain to clamp down on Boston as an example of what could happen to other rebellious colonies. But, tea? Really? This week’s history in the kitchen sought to explain tea culture so that you and your students could understand exactly how important tea was to the American colonists in the 1700s.

By 1720, American Colonists were consuming between 1.2 and 2 million pounds of tea a year. Tea got to the colonies on British merchant chips who brought it from China. Demand for tea was really high; therefore, it was also expensive. Along with tea came a deluge of consumer goods: kettles for boiling water, a teapot for brewing tea, tea strainers, tea linens, sugar bowls, tongs, teaspoons, and tea cups. Many of these products also came from China because they were made of porcelain, which Europeans hasn’t yet figured out how to produce.

Tea drinking also brought about a market for the “Tea Water Trade.” Water in colonial cities was gross. Have to empty your chamber pot? Dump it in the water. Have some animal waste? Dump it in the water. You get the idea. In order to get clean water to drink (and boil for tea), the water had to come from outside the city. Tea men would draw water and bring it to the cities in barrels. It cost a family about 45 shillings, or $310 modern dollars, a year for tea water. Considering the average tradesman made that amount in 1 month, tea water cost a pretty penny- er, shilling! Drinking tea, with all of its expenses, was for the wealthy class. This also explains why tea was a major sticking point in the causes of the American Revolution. It was mostly powerful, wealthy people who were concerned with British legislation and led us into Revolution.

Americans imitated English tea manners. They took private tea in the morning and drank it socially in the early afternoon and evening. Social tea drinking was an elaborate affair. Not only did a family need all the right tools, but they were also expected to serve food along with the tea. At tea, cakes, cold pastries, sweetmeats (sweets), preserved fruits, and nuts were served. Sometimes they would also serve wine. It could be quite a party! The tea table would include a teapot, a slop bowl (for the discarded tea leaves), a milk or cream container, tongs, a sugar bowl, cups and saucers, petite tea spoons, and later a tea urn. Colonists added cream and sugar to their tea; there is no evidence to suggest that they added citrus. Most people drank from a tea bowl (a teacup with no handle). Some drank from the saucer- but that was generally considered impolite. There was also a ceremony to decline tea. If tea was offered to you, you had to drink it. To let the server know you were finished, you would turn your cup upsidedown and place the spoon on top.

The whole family came together for tea along with any guests. You can see in paintings of families from the era (another sign of wealth) that families were gathered around the tea table. The mistress of the house would serve the tea, or the eldest daughter or youngest married woman. Children’s tea sets were also a popular toy, as young girls were socialized into tea culture through play.

Considering how important tea was in the lives of the upper middle class and very wealthy, it is no surprise that uprisings occurred around tea. In 1767, Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, which were a series of laws that placed taxes on various items, including tea. Merchants wanted to boycott tea, and some people did. They’d make American substitutes. For example, they’d use raspberry leaves to make tea. Many, however, drank tea, anyway, since 90% of the tea in the colonies was smuggled in from the Dutch.

The Townshend Acts were partially repealed in 1773, but the tax on tea was not repealed. There was more enforcement of the tax on tea. This included a new court system and harsh punishment for smugglers. Furthermore, the Tea Act was passed. The Tea Act allowed the British East India Tea Company to sell tea directly to the colonists, which bypassed the merchants. This made tea less expensive, but the colonists didn’t care. The Tea Act was just one more way the British were controlling the way colonists did business. Additionally, the Tea Act was designed to save a failing British East India Tea Company, a company in which many members of Parliament owned stock. The colonists were really angry.

Colonists turned away ships carrying tea into harbors of major cities. In Philadelphia and New York they were successful, but not in Boston. There was a standoff between Boston merchants and the governor of Massachusetts. The merchants didn’t want to let ships into the harbor to take their cargo off, and the governor said they had to let the ships come in. On December 16, 1773, the Boston Tea Party occurred. Three hundred and forty two chests of tea were thrown into Boston Harbor, which was worth 1 million modern dollars. “Tea parties” also happened in Philadelphia, New York, Charleston, and Annapolis (among other cities). In Annapolis, the colonists actually burned the ship in front of its captain. They also made sure the burning ship was in view of his wife who was giving birth at the time. Talk about threatening. After the Boston Tea party, people rejected tea for patriotic reasons but returned to tea drinking in 1783 when the war ended.

Little Cakes Recipe

Recipe adapted from Hannah Glasse’s Art of Cookery, first published in 1747.

Ingredients: 2 sticks of butter, 1c currants, 1c sugar, 2c flour, 2 whole eggs + 1 egg yolk

Procedure: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter. Add flour and sugar a little bit at a time. Add eggs and currants. Once the dough is smooth, put bits of dough about the size of a large egg into a greased muffin tin. Bake for 25 minutes (the edges should be golden brown), and enjoy with your tea!

Sources: The American Plate by Libby H. O’Connell, Smithsonian, Colonial Williamsburg, and Tea Drinking in 18th Century America: Its Etiquette and Equipage by Rodris Roth