Edward Proctor was a merchant in the North End of Boston and an active Son of Liberty at the time of the Boston Tea Party of 1773.
As a merchant, he was keenly aware of the revenue acts being passed by Parliament, having been affected by the Townshend Acts in previous years.
Proctor, as a member of the North End Caucus and the Sons of Liberty, was very active in the political and revolutionary events in Boston. In early 1770, he was part of a mob that revolted against suspected customs informer Ebenezer Richardson, which ultimately ended in the unfortunate death of 11-year-old Christopher Seider. On November 3, 1773, Proctor, along with 500 other North End Caucus members, gathered at the Liberty Tree to pressure one of the tea consignees, Richard Clarke, to send the ships back.
On November 3rd, the Sons of Liberty demanded the resignations of the East India Company tea consignees in Boston before the tea’s arrival. When they did not comply, Edward Proctor and the North End Caucus led a mob to the warehouse of tea importer and Consignee Richard Clarke. After a short parley with the tea merchants, who once again refused, the mob stormed the building, forcing the Consignees to barricade themselves in the second-floor counting room.
A couple of weeks later, Proctor volunteered to help guard the ships at Griffin’s Wharf to prevent the unloading of the tea. He then took up the command of the boarding party aboard the Dartmouth on the night of December 16, 1773. After the “destruction of the tea”, Proctor was among the leaders who led the participants from the wharf back into town.
During the Revolutionary War, John Proctor served in several official roles in the Massachusetts militia, eventually reaching the rank of Colonel. After the war, he went on to serve in additional civic positions, including the prominent role of Overseer of the Poor in Boston.
Edward Proctor died on November 1, 1811, and is buried in Boston’s Copp’s Hill Burying Ground.
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