In Public Houses: Drink and the Revolution of Authority in Colonial Massachusetts (Published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and ... and the University of North Carolina Press) - Softcover

Conroy, David W.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0807845213 ISBN 13: 9780807845219

Publisher: Omohundro Institute and UNC Press, 1995

Synopsis

In this study of the role of taverns in the development of Massachusetts society, David Conroy brings into focus a vital and controversial but little-understood facet of public life during the colonial era. Concentrating on the Boston area, he reveals a popular culture at odds with Puritan social ideals, one that contributed to the transformation of Massachusetts into a republican society. Public houses were an integral part of colonial community life and hosted a variety of official functions, including meetings of the courts. They also filled a special economic niche for women and the poor, many of whom turned to tavern-keeping to earn a living. But taverns were also the subject of much critical commentary by the clergy and increasingly restrictive regulations. Conroy argues that these regulations were not only aimed at curbing the spiritual corruption associated with public houses but also at restricting the popular culture that had begun to undermine the colony’s social and political hierarchy. Specifically, Conroy illuminates the role played by public houses as a forum for the development of a vocal republican citizenry, and he highlights the connections between the vibrant oral culture of taverns and the expanding print culture of newspapers and political pamphlets in the eighteenth century.

About this title

About the Author

David W. Conroy is an independent scholar living in Weymouth, Massachusetts.

From the Back Cover

In this study of the role of taverns in the development of Massachusetts society, David Conroy brings into focus a vital and controversial but little-understood facet of public life and material culture during the colonial era. Concentrating on the Boston area, he reveals a popular culture at odds with Puritan social ideals and the colony's social and political hierarchy and one that contributed to the transformation of Massachusetts into a republican society.

Edition details

• Publisher: Omohundro Institute and UNC Press
• Publication date: 1995
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0807845213
• ISBN 13: 9780807845219
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368