While the political divisions in our country in the 2020’s seem epic and “unprecedented” (maybe that should be the word of the year), a look at history tells us that this is nothing new. Leading up to the Revolutionary War, Rochester, like many New England towns were split between those who supported the King of England and those who called for independence. There were two taverns in Rochester, just a stone’s throw from each other, but miles apart because of the different views of their patrons. Pictured here is one of the taverns where the idea of revolution was debated and supported.
With the creation of our new memorial, I have written about our town’s participation in the War for Independence, but that time period is full of stories. In fact, our town was involved in one of the first acts of “overt treason” leading up to the war. The event was referred to as the “Body of the People” incident.
In September of 1774, a large group of Bristol and Plymouth County men assembled in Rochester. The group which added Wareham men to their number, as they passed through that town, began a peaceful march toward their ultimate destination, the Barnstable County Courthouse. The stated purpose of the march was to protest a new act from the British government to take away “the right of local selectmen to draw names of jurors” who would participate in trials.
The real purpose, however, was to stop all appeals cases from continuing onto higher courts which would put them under the control of the English King. Abraham Holmes of Rochester who was one of the march’s participants wrote in his memoirs, “the first overt act done in the face of day, without disguise, in the controversy with Great Britain that according to British Jurisprudence would be called treason.” The men taking part in this march, unlike the tea party participants, wore no disguises and took the risk of being arrested, imprisoned and possibly hanged.
When the marchers arrived at the Barnstable Court, their protest succeeded. The Chief Justice of the court, Colonel James Otis agreed not to call the court to order, thus halting the work of the King’s court. No doubt protected by their numbers, there is no record of anyone suffering punishment, but this is just one of many acts and proclamations that led to the war and the independence that we will be celebrating on this coming Tuesday.
By Connie Eshbach