TRUMBAUERVILLE, Pa. – With America’s 250th anniversary in the coming years, a local historical society is working to widely exhibit and tell the story of John Freese’s Rebellion.
“I think it’s beautiful,” said Danita Freese of Trumbauersville, Bucks County, where her cousin’s colonial-era home is located.
“You’ve never been here before?”
“I haven’t.”
“Why?” I asked.
“I didn’t know the address,” she said.
But many people have probably seen the name John Freese.
“We came out to Quakertown and saw the John Freese highway sign, and obviously, Freese isn’t that common around here,” she recalled.
Local schools also do not teach about his rebellion.
“Have you ever written a movie?” I asked.
“No, this is the first time,” said Sarah Jane Williams, president of the Lower Macungie Township Historical Society.
She wrote a half-hour film script about the 1799 Tax Rebellion, which Williams said focused on current issues of individuals versus groups and the spread of misinformation. It is said that
“Which right is more important? Does it only matter to one person because they’re angry, does it dictate to the whole society, or does society override the rights of the individual?” Williams he says.
The trailer follows how Freese rallies local farmers against paying a new federal housing tax through the eyes of a 21st century teenager, and follows Freese and his militia inside Bethlehem’s Sun Inn. The scene culminates in a demand for the release of the prisoners of war.
Williams cited a quote from a 1903 book about the rebellion about how dire the situation was.
“If Colonel Nichols had not surrendered the prisoners, Bethlehem would have been burned and completely destroyed,” Williams read.
“This was like January 6th in Bethlehem,” she added.
Luckily that wasn’t the case. Williams’ mission to produce and distribute the film to area school districts depends on raising $220,000.
A fundraiser will be held at Forino’s Winery on Sunday.
“It’s very, very important that people understand their local history and the importance of what our ancestors have contributed to this area,” Williams said.
For Danita, that contribution still stands.
“You said you were a little rebellious, but which fits your family?” I said to her at home in Fries.
“That’s right. We have our own opinions,” she said.
Once funding is raised, filming will begin in March and is expected to be completed in August.