Francis Rotch's Account of The Boston Tea Party

That two of the three ships which participated in the famous Boston Tea Party—the Beaver and the Dartmouth—hud taken cargoes of whale oil to London preliminary to being chartered by the British India Company to carry the tea to Boston, is generally well known. However, the activities of Francis Rotch, agent and part owner of the Dartmouth, have been nearly lost, and the monograph titled "The Forgotten Man of The Boston Tea Party" has helped to bring this phase of the historical event to light.

As a sequel to this study, it will be of interest to read the testimony which Francis Rotch gave to the Lords of the Privy Council in London on February 19, 1774. Preserved in the collection of documents at the Public Record Office in London, the official testimony was copied by a Nantucket historian in 1973—just 199 years after it was recorded—and reads as follows: "The Information of Francis Rotch, Merchant, lately arrived from Boston, taken before Lords of the Privy Council, 19th of February, 1774; Rotch being of the people called Quakers, affirmeth and saith: "That he is part owner of the ship Dartmouth, Captain Hall; that he was at Boston in North America, when the said ship arrived there on 28th of November last. That upon her arrival Mr. Mollineaux, Captain Bradford and another Person, whose name he does not recollect, and who stated themselves to be deputed for that purpose by certain persons, calling themselves a Committee of Correspondence, came to him and desired he would not enter his ship 'till the Tuesday following, namely, the 30th. "That on the 29th a meeting of the Body of the People was held at which he was present. That the object of that Meeting was to concert measures to prevent the landing of the Teas from London. That Jonathan Williams was Moderator at that Meeting, acted as Clerk, and that several of the Selectmen of the Town of Boston, (he believed all of them) were present. "That he has a general recollection of all that passed at that Meeting, and a printed Paper containing an Account of the Resolution and Proceedings of the said Meeting, transmitted to the Earl of Dartmouth by Governor Hutchinson, having been put into his hands, and he having perused the same, he stated that the said Paper contained an exact Account of what passed, as well on the 29th of November as on the succeeding day, when he was also present. "That the principal persons who were most active in the Business of those Meetings were Mr. Samuel Adams, Mr. John Hancock, Dr. Young, Mr. Mollineaux and Dr. Warren. That Mr. Jonathan Williams was Moderator at the said Meeting, and that he well remembered that most of the Questions proposed in the said Meeting, as stated in the Paper above mentioned, were put by him the said Williams.

FRANCIS ROTCH AND THE BOSTON TEA PARTY 21

"That on or about the 13th of December, Mr. Mollineaux and one or two more whose names he cannot now recollect, came to him and required him to attend a Meeting composed of Persons who were styled a Committee of Correspondence established at Boston, and also of like committees established for other Towns. That he accordingly attended the same Meeting, in which Mr. Samuel Adams appeared to act as Chairman. That he does not recollect the names of all the Persons present at that Meeting, but very well remembers the following: Mr. John Hancock, Mr. Oliver Wendell, Captain John Bradford, Nathaniel Appleton, Capt. Foster and Mr. Nathaniel Barker and Dr. Foster. "That he was asked by the said Committee why his ship was not in readiness to depart, according to the orders he had received at the Meeting of the Body of the People. When he told them it was not of his power to send her away, as measures were taken by the men-of-war to prevent her going out of the Harbour; in reply to which he was told that the ship must go, for that the People of Boston and the neighboring Towns absolutely required and expected it. "That on or about the 14th of December he received a message to attend another meeting of the Body of People at the South Meeting House. That Mr. Samuel Philip Savage was the Moderator of that Meeting. That he was required at that Meeting to send his ship to sea by Wednesday morn. That upon his urging the improbability of it, it was ordered that he should immediately apply to the Collector for a Clearance, and a Committee of ten persons, among whom were Dr. Benjamin Kent, Mr. Adams, Mr. Appleton, Mr. Foster, Dr. Church, Dr. Young and Mr. Cheevers were appointed to go along with him to said Collector, in order to be witnesses of what passed. "He accordingly applied to the Collector at his Lodgings, who said he could do nothing out of his office. That the next day he again applied to the said Collector at his office, who refused to give him a Clearance, and he was ordered to attend the Meeting the next day. "That upon the refusal of the Collector to clear his ship, and it appearing evident that the People were determined at all Risks to oppose the landing of his cargo, he had no Remedy but to protest against the Proceedings of the People, which he did, and regularly entered such Protest with a Public Notary. That upon his attending the Meeting of the Body of People on the next day, a vote was passed requiring him to apply to the Governor for a Let Pass, with which such requisition he dared not refuse to comply and made application to the Governor accordingly, who refused to give him such a Let Pass but told him that if he wanted Protection he would endeavor to give it to him. But he dared not accept said offer, apprehending that if he had his life would have been in danger. "That upon his going back to the Meeting, and reporting the Governor's Refusal, Mr. Adams said that he did not see what more they could do to save their country.

"That from the 29th of November to the time of the Destruction of the Tea on the 16th of December, an armed Guard, as he was informed and believes, was put aboard his ship every night in order, as he conceives, to prevent the Landing of the Teas. That Mr. Edward Proctor was Captain of the first Guard that was appointed, but that he does not recollect the names of those who were captains at other times, nor does he know the names of any of the Persons who composed the Guard; that he had heard a proposal had been made to Mr. Hancock to burn his ship and Cargo two nights before the Tea was destroyed, but that Mr. Hancock opposed any such Proceedings."

Captain James Hall, master of the D a r t m o u t h , also made a deposition before the Lords of the Privy Council at Whitehall, corroborating the testimony of Francis Rotch. Hall stated that he had brought the vessel up to Griffin's Wharf at orders of the armed company of guards which the Boston committee had placed aboard, and that he had done so as he believed "violence would have been used against him if he had refused to obey."

The fact that, despite the strenuous activity aboard the D a r t m o u t h during the actual "Tea Party," no damage was inflicted on the brig itself is a definite indication that Francis Rotch had won a measure of respect from the Patriot leaders and especially the "Indians." - Edouard A. Stackpole -