Heyo! Happy Monday! This week I've decided to focus on a moment in American history that I found very interesting when I first heard the tagline and digging into it more, my inner nerd got even more excited. So let's get into it.
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| City Tavern || Library of Congress |
First off, I need to quickly give context for one of the key players in this story. The Light Horse of the City of Philadelphia was one of the first military organizations for the American Revolution. It is today known as The First Troop Philadelphia City Calvary. Established in 1774, the Calvary fought in the battles of Trenton, Princeton, Brandywine, and Germantown during the American Revolutionary War. It also became George Washington's personal protection during the war.
On September 15, 1787, Philadelphia Light Horse decided to throw Washington - who was not yet president of the United States but was President of the Constitutional Convention - a bit of a celebration following the end of the Constitutional Convention. It was two days before the Constitution was signed by the Founding Fathers. This celebration was held at City Tavern in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which still exists today.
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| City Tavern bill || Courtesy of Gordon Lloyd |
Gordon Floyd, professor emeritus at Pepperdine University, found a typed-up version of the bill that he believes was created in the 1950s from the Philadelphia Light Horse's original archives. I find it incredible that the original bill lasted almost two centuries.
According to the bill, the alcohol order included:
- 54 bottles of Madera
- 60 bottles of Claret
- 8 bottles of Old Stock
- 22 bottles of Porter
- 8 bottles of cider
- 12 bottles of beer
- 7 large bowls of punch
Now, there is no exact measurement of the size of the bottles or bowls used, but historians estimate that there may have been over 45 gallons of alcohol consumed that night. The bill also lets us know that the party had 55 people plus 16 musicians and servants who added their own alcohol charge to the final charge.
I bet you're wondering what the final charge was. According to the bill, it was 89 pounds, 4 shillings, and 2 pence. If you're American, like me, you are most likely unfamiliar with that currency, and I apologize for being too incompetent to translate that into US dollars, but according to my research, that is equal to $15,400 after adjusting for modern inflation. The bill was paid by Samuel Miles who was Captain of the Philadelphia Light Horse at the time.
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| George Washington by Charles Wilson Peale (1776) |
If you're wondering if Washington had a good time with the festivities, Alexis Coe, Washington historian and author of You Never Forget Your First stated in a phone interview with USA Today, "Washington really did not want to be there. He was happy to provide the stable unifying presence that the founders and framers needed in order to sign the Constitution...but he was exhausted, he was without his wife - who he really liked to be with - and he knew there was no way she would join him.", Yes, you read that correctly. President George Washington was indeed a wife guy, confirmed. As for whether he partook, Coe further states, "He was famously self-controlled. If anyone had gotten out of hand, if anyone had done more than break a few glasses or made excessive toasts, he would have put them in place."
If you enjoyed learning about this interesting time in history, please check out my other That Time... posts! And if you have any other weird or interesting moments in history that interest you, drop them in the comments. I'm always looking for new things to learn and write about. Have a great week!
...Is that bill typeset? Damn I guess if your tab is high enough they can afford to go to the local print shop and get something formal sent out.
ReplyDeleteFloyd believes it was typed up in the 1950s by historians based on the actual bill. I couldn't find photos of the real bill unfortunately. But it should still be in the Calvary's archives.
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