On This Day: Washington Pardons Whiskey Rebels In January of
1791, Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton proposed an
excise tax “upon spirits distilled within the United States, and
for appropriating the same.” The vehement rejection of this tax
by Americans living in Western Pennsylvania challenged the
authority of the nascent American government. By 1794, the so-
called Whiskey Rebellion led President Washington to personally
command the United States militia westward to stop the rebels.
On this day in 1795, Washington pardoned the two whiskey rebels
convicted of treason. Western farmers viewed the tax as an abuse
of federal authority that targeted individuals who relied on
crops such as corn, rye, and grain to earn a profit. Shipping
this harvest east was dangerous because of poor storage and
inadequate roads, leading many farmers to distill their grain
into liquor which was easier to ship and preserve. Large-scale
farmers could easily absorb the financial strain of an
additional tax. Poorer farmers