The Revolutionary Shore – August 4, 1773

On this very day, 250 years ago . . .

Merchant captains raced to get their goods in colonial ports before the storm season arrived. They always fretted about hurricanes, but this year an international trade storm darkened the horizon.  The May 1773 Tea Act threatened major disruptions in colonial commerce and already snagged at the fabric of British colonial society.

Though the Shore had no newspaper of its own in 1773, merchant vessels brought news and goods of the empire.  August advertisements showed a surprisingly exotic selection available from coastal merchants: Chinese ivory handled knives and forks, red Morocco belts, Jamaican rum, “Japanned” chests, Bristol beer, Gloucester cheese, Irish rose butter, linens—including a coarse grade for “servants”—from Bristol and Wales, and even Italian orange flower water.  

Accomack and Northampton gentry who wished to keep up with the latest London or Paris fashions in August 1773 needed a supply of ruffled muslins, ribbons and fabric flowers, embroidered silks, silver buckles, and other ornamentals for increasingly stylized hair styles. 

By this time, longstanding Shore merchants had competition from Scottish born businessmen who found the Shore perfect for home and trade.   They all carefully weighed the costs of loyalty and allyship as increased warnings came from Williamsburg, London, and the sister colonies: trouble dead ahead. 

Join WESR on the 4th of each month to learn more about Virginia and the Shore’s role in the War for Independence.  Get ready for the Revolutionary Shore!