Revolutionary War era tea at the Bronck House

COXSACKIE―On Sunday, September 20 the Bronck House will be the perfect setting for a Revolutionary War era tea.

Costumed staff will pour brimming cups of the three most popular teas served during the Revolutionary era. The tea will be served with a variety of homemade cookies, breads and buns, some made from colonial recipes. Shelled nuts and dried fruit considered delicacies in the 1770s will round out the menu.

Museum Curator Shelby Mattice will be present to tell the tales of the tea table along with an exhibit of period tea equipage from the museum’s collection.

Is there anyone who isn’t aware of the Boston Tea Party? Three hundred and forty-two chests of Bohea tea were shoved into Boston Harbor in December 1773, much to the unbridled glee of the onlooking crowd. What came next was a boycott of English tea. Soon it became obvious that there needed to be a substitute for the customary soothing cup of tea. Straightening this mess out fell to the women whose husbands threw the tea in the harbor.

Many of the patriotic home-grown “teas” proved unsatisfactory, at best and undrinkable at worst. Within weeks people simply resumed drinking tea ideally smuggled into the colonies by enterprising American businessmen or Dutch merchants. Even staunch patriots like John Adams after a long day’s travel stopped at a tavern and ordered a cup of tea. In Revolutionary America it turned out that tea and revolution were both things that colonial Americans were unwilling to give up.

Tea and Revolution will begin at 2 p.m. Reservations are appreciated and can be made at https://www.gchistory.org/tea. Advance sale tickets are $25. If any remaining seating is available, tickets may be purchased at the door for $30. The Bronck Museum is located at 90 County Route 42, Coxsackie.