On June 1st Benjamin Franklin House teamed up with the National Archives, Kew Society and DAR to commemorate the 250th Anniversary of the passing of the four acts known collectively as the Coercive or Intolerable Acts. The acts were in response to the Boston Tea Party and their severe measures pushed the colonies a big step closer to revolution.

To commemorate this major milestone in the lead-up to the events of 1776, the National Archives put on a fantastic document display featuring some incredible pieces from 1774. One of the documents on display was the Boston Port Act, passed on 31st March and taking into effect on 1st June, exactly 250 years to the day of our event. In addition to this, there were also 31 letters written by Benjamin Franklin throughout 1774 addressed to parliament in response to the acts.

Following the document display, Benjamin Franklin House took part in an exciting debate representing the colonists and arguing in opposition to the following motion; This House believes that the Coercive Acts were an appropriate response to the Boston Tea Party. Representing the House was our Director, Dr. Márcia Balisciano, who went up against a formidable opponent representing the British parliament, Rebecca Palmer.

Both sides delivered convincing arguments and answered several tough questions from the audience towards the end of the debate. Once all was said and done, a vote was taken to see who agreed or disagreed with the motion. In a close vote the colonists clinched the victory 23 to 17.

It was a great afternoon for all involved and we’d like to thank the DAR, National Archives and Kew Society for inviting us to participate. This event marks of one the many commemorations in the build up to the 250th celebration of the Declaration of Independence taking place on 4th July 2026. Benjamin Franklin House will be celebrating with more events like this along the way, so keep an eye on our website for more engaging events and talks coming soon!