The Fries Rebellion of 1798-99
Also known as the "Hot Water Rebellion"
The village of Millerstown, now the Borough of Macungie, gained national notoriety during the Fries Rebellion of 1798-99 as one of the hotbeds of opposition to the unpopular "Direct Tax" levied by the federal government. In eastern Pennsylvania, tax assessors were largely Quakers and Moravians who had abstained from Revolutionary participation. They were recruited by the administration of President John Adams to levy taxes against their patriot German Lutheran and Reformed neighbors. By Spring of 1798, the Federalist led Congress feared that war with France was inevitable. To prepare for the impending conflict, they sought to raise troops and money to carry on the defense of the new nation. The first action of Congress was to pass four laws to strengthen the federal government (the Naturalization Act, the Alien Act, the Alien Enemies Act, and the Sedition Act), collectively known as the Alien & Sedition Acts, which gave Congress and the President almost despotic powers. Many Americans challenged the constitutionality of these laws.
On July 9, 1798, Congress also passed an act providing "for the valuation of lands and dwelling houses and the enumeration of slaves within the United States." This was followed on July 14, 1798, by "An Act to lay and collect a direct tax within the United States." The new tax was a direct tax on property, houses, and slaves. The Pennsylvania portion of these tax revenues was set by Congress at $237,177.72. Many Millerstown residents, who had been loyal supporters of the American cause during the Revolution, felt that this new tax was unjust and illegal. Suspicion, fueled by the public unpopularity of the Alien & Sedition Acts, arose when the assessors exceeded their directive and counted the number of window panes in the houses. Counting windows was NOT part of the Direct Tax assessment, and raised suspicion that it was done for the purpose of some future taxation.
At first, opposition to the tax took the form of loud protest, but it soon escalated to violent resistance as federal assessors were threatened and then physically assaulted. In March 1799, John Fries of Milford Township and a group of approximately 100 armed men accosted a federal Marshall in Bethlehem who had arrested a group of local residents for interfering with the federal assessors. President Adams responded by sending troops into Northampton County to suppress the insurrection. Fries was captured and taken to Philadelphia to be tried for treason.
Then, during April of 1799, federal troops encamped for one week in Schaeffer's woods to the north of Millerstown, along the Swabia Creek. Armed soldiers entered houses during the night and local supporters were dragged away to join Fries in prison. Several Millerstown residents were active participants in the rebellion, and Michael Schmoyer and David Schaeffer, who were among those convicted in Philadelphia with John Fries and held prisoner in Norristown, contracted yellow fever and died in prison. Local folklore tells us that David Schaeffer's wife, who was also active in the opposition, is rumored to have been the first to pour boiling water on the federal appraisers, and is credited with giving the name "Hot Water" to the rebellion. After David's death in prison, she married Jacob Miller and lived in the village of Millerstown to an old age, where she was well known by the name of Grandy Miller. As local historian O. P. Knauss writes in his 1943 History of Macungie, "It was an exciting period in the early history of old Millerstown."
On July 9, 1798, Congress also passed an act providing "for the valuation of lands and dwelling houses and the enumeration of slaves within the United States." This was followed on July 14, 1798, by "An Act to lay and collect a direct tax within the United States." The new tax was a direct tax on property, houses, and slaves. The Pennsylvania portion of these tax revenues was set by Congress at $237,177.72. Many Millerstown residents, who had been loyal supporters of the American cause during the Revolution, felt that this new tax was unjust and illegal. Suspicion, fueled by the public unpopularity of the Alien & Sedition Acts, arose when the assessors exceeded their directive and counted the number of window panes in the houses. Counting windows was NOT part of the Direct Tax assessment, and raised suspicion that it was done for the purpose of some future taxation.
At first, opposition to the tax took the form of loud protest, but it soon escalated to violent resistance as federal assessors were threatened and then physically assaulted. In March 1799, John Fries of Milford Township and a group of approximately 100 armed men accosted a federal Marshall in Bethlehem who had arrested a group of local residents for interfering with the federal assessors. President Adams responded by sending troops into Northampton County to suppress the insurrection. Fries was captured and taken to Philadelphia to be tried for treason.
Then, during April of 1799, federal troops encamped for one week in Schaeffer's woods to the north of Millerstown, along the Swabia Creek. Armed soldiers entered houses during the night and local supporters were dragged away to join Fries in prison. Several Millerstown residents were active participants in the rebellion, and Michael Schmoyer and David Schaeffer, who were among those convicted in Philadelphia with John Fries and held prisoner in Norristown, contracted yellow fever and died in prison. Local folklore tells us that David Schaeffer's wife, who was also active in the opposition, is rumored to have been the first to pour boiling water on the federal appraisers, and is credited with giving the name "Hot Water" to the rebellion. After David's death in prison, she married Jacob Miller and lived in the village of Millerstown to an old age, where she was well known by the name of Grandy Miller. As local historian O. P. Knauss writes in his 1943 History of Macungie, "It was an exciting period in the early history of old Millerstown."
Copyright (c) 2011 by the Macungie Historical Society, Inc. All Rights Reserved.