Episode 8 — The Pine Tree Riot (April 1772)

Angry New Hampshire settlers drag Deputy Surveyor John Sherburn from his bed, beat him, tar and feather him, ride him out of town on a rail, and force him to resign. The mob is protesting the British "Broad Arrow" policy that reserved the largest white pines for Royal Navy masts. One of the first violent anti-British protests in the northern colonies — and the origin of the Pine Tree flag later carried by Continental forces.