The Complete List of Participants

The men who dumped tea into Boston Harbor were from many different backgrounds. About one-third of them were skilled artisans such as carpenters, masons and shoemakers. A much smaller number were merchants, doctors, clerks, and the like.

The occupations of all the participants are not known, but the majority were probably apprentices and common laborers, Alongside participants of English descent were men of Irish, Scottish, French, African and Portuguese origins. The Tea Party was also the work of young people.

Two-thirds of those whose ages were known were under 20, including 16 teenagers. Only nine are known to have been 40 years old or older. Most of the men were from Boston and vicinity, but some came from as far away as Worcester and Maine. Listed below are named of patriots recorded to have been involved in the Tea Party protest. Not all of the participants are known, as some carried the secret of their participation to the end of their days.

Thomas Crafts

Samuel Cooper

George Hewes

David Kinnison

Thomas Melvill

Paul Revere

Biographies of the participants provide interesting insights into the world of people who planned and carried out the destruction of tea. With the ultimate question, who exactly planned the protest still unanswered these stories may have the clues.

From the modern day perspective the Tea Party may seem like a powerful but a largely symbolic protest. But in heated atmosphere of anti-British struggle in Boston, participation in the event that would be regarded as treason was very dangerous. To that testifies the fact that almost all patriots fled Boston shortly there after. Some of them never returned back.

In the below list, not every participant has an extended biography, but those who do provide a truly interesting read for anyone who wants to understand the mystery of the Boston Tea Party.

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No other group had more members participating in the Tea Party as the Sons of Liberty.