Shays Rebellion WebQuest

Wars End

Overview-A Precarious Situation

1. What was the Newburgh Conspiracy?

A movement among officers within the Continental Army in the winter of 1782-83 to
pressure Congress into honoring earlier agreements of pensions and back pay.

Overview-Emergency Measures

2. Whos suggestion was it to allow soldiers to keep their, uniforms, muskets, and other
army-issued equipment?
General George Washington

Army (Tab)

3. According to Thomas Fosters Diary, what two questions seemed to be on every soldiers
lips?
"When do you expect to be discharged and go home and be rid of this army"? and, "How
we are to be paid off"?

Boom and Bust

Boom (Tab)

4. In November of 1783, how was business for store owner John Williams
His shelves were well-stocked, and the store hummed with activity.
5. List 3 items available for purchase, at affordable prices, from Williams Store
Rum, sugar, salt, nails, clothes

Portrait (Image)

6. Why was sugar harder to get and more expensive during the war?
During the war, British blockades meant that sugar from the West Indies was harder to
get and more expensive.

Bust (Tab)

7. What was different about John Williams store in the fall of 1784 as opposed to the fall of
1783?
Fewer customers were willing or able to buy.
8. What was specie?
Gold or silver currency.

9. What is the difference between direct taxes and indirect taxes?

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Taxes that is levied directly on the taxpayer as opposed to indirect taxes, which are levied
on particular goods or services.

Petition and Protest

Overview-Under Siege

10. What was the Courts of Common Pleas, and what kind of cases were tried there?
A court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; This court tried civil cases, including
lawsuits for debt.
11. What was the Supreme Judicial Courts, and what kind of cases were tried there?
The highest judicial court in Massachusetts; Tried cases appealed from the lower Courts
of Common Pleas, as well as criminal cases.
12. In 1780, what group of individuals referred to themselves as the Regulators?
The term by which the Massachusetts protesters of the 1780s referred to themselves.

Overview-An Uneasy Truce

13. What 3 demands did Captain. Daniel Shays make to General Shepard on behalf of the
Regulators?
a. He asked that the state legislature refrain from indicting any man who had been part
of the previous court closings.
b. That no more courts convene until the people's grievances had been considered and
redressed.
c. That the government dismiss the government militia guarding the courthouse.

A Bloody Encounter

Overview-At the Arsenal

14. When are where (specific) did Shays Rebellion take place?
January 25, 1787, United States Arsenal, Springfield, Massachusetts

Regulators (Tab)

15. How many Rebels stormed the Massachusetts Arsenal on January 25, 1787?
1,400
16. According to the text, what was the reason for taking the Arsenal in the first place?
Taking the Arsenal, the Regulators reasoned, would force the government to listen to the
peoples' grievances and concerns.

Government (Tab)

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17. True or False-Daniel Shays and the Regulators successfully took over the Arsenal, and
had their concerns and grievances heard in a court of law? (If False, briefly describe the
outcome of Shays Rebellion)
False-General Shepard generously the Rebels three minutes to disperse peaceably. After
their refusal, the General ordered the artillery to fire warning shots. The rebel leaders
ordered their men forward. Next, cannonballs smashed straight into the advancing mob.
Grapeshot from a howitzer cast the rebels into a state of confusion panic. Without a
musket being fired on either side, Shays' mob turned tail and fled, leaving behind their
dead and wounded.

Taking the Oath

Observers (Bottom left box)

18. How did George Washington feel about Daniel Shays after the rebellion?
Shays was either a weak man, the dupe of some characters who are yet behind the
curtain, or has been deceived by his followers.

Overview-Partial Pardon

19. What was the Disqualification Act?

The Disqualification Act sets forth conditions for granting pardons to the men who
participated in Shays' Rebellion as privates or non-commissioned officers.-Regulators
that came forward had to pay a 9 pence fee for taking the oath of loyalty to the state.
20. List 3 effects/outcomes that resulted from the enforcement of the Disqualification Act?
Oath takers had to surrender their weapons. They were prohibited from running a tavern,
teaching school, holding office or voting for three years.

Regulators-Defeat

21. What became of Captain Daniel Shays after the rebellion?

Shays and other leaders had gone into hiding in neighboring New York and Vermont,
exiled from their homes and families.-Side Note: Shays was arrested in Vermont and
sentenced to death for his part in the rebellion. Shays was later pardoned, and
eventually received a pension for his 5 years of service without pay in the
Continental Army. However, Shays was vilified for his part in the rebellion and
spent his remaining days drunk and in poverty.

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Making a Nation

Overview-Fatal Flaws

22. What weakness of the Articles of Confederation did Edmond Randolph speak of in the
opening speech of the 1787 Philadelphia Convention?
"The foederal government could not check the quarrels between states, nor a rebellion in
any."

EXTRA CREDIT-TRY IT, YOU KNOW IT!

What historic document was constructed in part due to cause and effect of Shays Rebellion in
conjunction with the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?

The United States Constitution

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