Document Type

Research Paper

Department/Program

History

Date

2024

Abstract

Excerpt from paper: "On December 14, 1763, a group of discontented farmers from the Pennsylvania frontier, called the Paxton Boys, arrived at Conestoga Manor in Lancaster County. The Paxton Boys were Scots-Irish Presbyterians who aimed to take over a Quaker colony. The group of farmers murdered six peaceful Conestoga Indians who were under the long-standing protection of the colonial Pennsylvania government. After the initial attack, Pennsylvania’s government placed the remaining Conestoga in a Lancaster jailhouse for their supposed protection. The Paxton Boys then traveled to Lancaster and slaughtered fourteen more Conestoga peoples. These murderous and militant frontiersmen claimed that the Conestoga Indians had supplied Native tribes fighting in Pontiac’s Rebellion, a pan-Indian conflict from 1763 to 1766 to remove British colonists from Indian territories. 1 After the second attack, surviving Conestoga Indians sought refuge in Philadelphia, hoping for protection from the Pennsylvania government. When the Paxton Boys heard about this move, they marched on Philadelphia, planning to attack the jail and kill the remaining Conestoga and Moravian Indians. 2 To avoid further massacre and bloodshed, Pennsylvania officials met the Paxton Boys in Germantown and struck a deal with them, preventing them from entering the city. 3..."

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