The shoemaker and the tea party

Award-winning historian Alfred F. Young unearths a rich story of the American Revolution with this account of George Robert Twelves Hewes, a Boston shoemaker who took part in such key events as the Boston Massacre and the Tea Party, and then served in the militia and as a seaman. Young pieces together this extraordinary tale and adds to it poignant reflections on the historical value of oral testimony and memory, and explores key questions about a time crucial in the shaping of national identity: What did it mean for the Tea Party to be claimed as an American symbol by both Boston Brahmins and the first trade unions? How do the memories of ordinary people pass into history? How should their stories be recognized by keepers of the past? Young's search leads us on an exciting journey and offers a provocative reading of American history.