Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 was brought about by a United States tax in 1791 on whiskey makers. The rebellion tested the use of federal power to enforce a federal law within a state. Farmers in western Pennsylvania led the uprising. They and farmers in other frontier regions found it profitable to turn much of their corn and rye crop into whiskey. They could ship whiskey to markets more profitably than they could bulky grain, because frontier transportation facilities were poor.
The federal tax law permitted government agents to enter homes and collect from small whiskey producers. Frontier farmers assembled quickly to protest the law and threatened tax inspectors. Congressional amendments soon removed the tax from the smallest stills. This change satisfied many farmers in Virginia and North Carolina. However, whiskey makers in Pennsylvania continued to refuse to pay the federal whiskey tax.
In the summer of 1794, the federal government ordered the arrest of the Pennsylvania ringleaders and their removal to Philadelphia. Rebel farmers in western Pennsylvania prevented the arrests. The rebels exchanged gunfire with government representatives, burned property of tax inspectors, and marched on Pittsburgh. Several people were killed and wounded before President George Washington raised an army of nearly 13,000 soldiers who put down the rebellion. Two rebels were convicted of treason, but they were later pardoned.
