William Houston
Duplin County, Duplin County, North Carolina
Marker Inscription
William Houston. Stamp master of North Carolina, 1765, resigned during demonstration in Wilmington against the Stamp Act; a physician at Sarecta, four mi. E.
Erected by North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources
The Story
Appointed North Carolina's stamp master in 1765, William Houston resigned his post under pressure from a public demonstration in Wilmington, one of the colony's fierce protests against the Stamp Act. A physician who practiced at Sarecta, four miles east, he became an unlikely figure in the colonial resistance to British taxation. His retreat helped ensure the hated stamps were never distributed in the colony.
Why it matters
His forced resignation was part of the wave of colonial defiance against the Stamp Act that set America on the road to revolution.
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Related people
- · William Houston
Related events
- · Stamp Act crisis
Themes & tags
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