What was The Whiskey Rebellion in US history?

Answer 1

Movement across the Appalachian Mountains was difficult. There were only Native American foot trails along the ridges, that Indians walked to hunt animals. This fact, along with an Indian treaty that promised Whites would stay on the east of the mountains, kept settlers from moving west.

Beginning in 1744, individual explorers began going over the mountains, including 2 brothers of German Baptist faith. They made it into southwestern Pennsylvania, into now Greene County. They were captured by Indians and taken to Canada before being returned to PA.

By the 1760s, even though lands were not officially open to settlement, single families began moving into SW PA. The lands are rolling, often rocky hills with cliffs and steep drop offs. Farmers found that oxen and sheep did well in these areas. Corn and wheat grew well during the summers.

Nearly every new settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains contained at least one still. Farmers found it most profitable to make MASH from their corn, to make whiskey to ship across the mountains, rather than shipping corn over the mountains. Transport was still by walking, or by horseback in single file along the narrow foot paths. There were no roads. Horses could carry casks of whiskey to markets in the east.

However, the government decided to tax the whiskey on the market side. This severely hurt farmers' incomes. So the farmers protested. The main area of the protest was SW PA, especially in Washington County and Greene County PA. David Bradford, a wealthy lawyer-farmer, lived on Main Street in the City of Washington (his house still stands there) and he headed the Whiskey Rebellion in that area.

The "fight" was against the taxes being enacted against their livelihoods as whiskey makers.