Joseph Downing was a Quaker which caused him to not support the War at its outbreak. This was mostly due to the fact that as a member of The Religious Society of Friends, otherwise known as Quakers, they were pacifists.
The Drinker and Downing family come from a merchant background so during the events that we’re talking hold in the colonies he was impacted quite hard. The taxes on all the goods that were coming from the Empire, such as tea, glass, paper, etc. was hurting his business. This caused Joseph not to be fond of the British Crown or Parliament. After all the British were making it very hard for most merchants to make a proper living.
The Townshend Duties effected the merchants to another degree. After the passage of the Townshend Duties, the colonies went into a massive boycott effort. This was so successful that merchants make in Britain lobbied Parliament to repeal the Townshend Duties. This although on the surface looks good Parliament would eventually keep the Tea tax part of the Townshend Duties and rebrand it the Tea Act.
The Boston Massacre was a major story for almost every American. Joseph Downing would have most likely did not support the actions of either side. Sadly, though the marketing and telling of the stories were strongly biased towards the British being the aggressors. Even though both the British and Colonist were both being aggressive towards each other and even today we are not sure which side gave the order to fire. Due to all of this Joseph Downing probably sided with the Colonist.
The Tea Act, passed in 1773, would allow the East Indian Company to ship their tea straight to the American Colonies. This was done to help the struggling East Indian Company, which was an integral part of the British Economy. The new Tea Act of 1773 was also boycotted even harder than the previous taxes. This would lead to the Boston Tea Party.
Joseph Downing being a Quaker and a pacifist would not want any violence when it came to the taxes but never the less, he did not like the taxes what so ever. This was because he was a merchant and was not making nearly as much as he was before the taxation and eventual boycotts.
After the repeal of the Tea Act due to the actions of the Tea Party and the boycotts that were happening all over the Colonies. Things were not all positive though because the British Parliament had decided to put their foot down and pass the Intolerable Acts. These included the Boston Port Act, the Massachusetts Government Act, the Administrative Justice Act, and the Quebec Act. The Boston Port Act would close Boston’s Harbor. This was a direct response to the Boston Tea Party. The Massachusetts Government Act was an Act to better regulating the government of the province of the Massachusetts Bay in New England. The Administrative Justice Act was an act to the impartial administration of justice in the case of persons questioned for any acts done by them in the execution of the law, or for the suppression of riots and tumults, in the province of the Massachusetts Bay, in New England. Finally, the Quebec Act would give all of the lands that were previously blocked to the American Colonists to the provisional government of Quebec.
These Acts probably didn’t affect Joseph Downing, unlike other wealthier American Colonist. This was because didn’t have plans to go out west or to spectate the land and sell it to other people that we know of. He also didn’t live in Massachusetts who was affected heavily by the new Intolerable Acts. This is shown from most accounts of Joseph Downing he was unaffected by the new Intolerable Acts.
Finally, Independence and The American Revolution. Joseph Downing as stated earlier is a Quaker and Pacifist so he didn’t enlist in the war for either side. Unlike his family members such as Elizabeth Drinker, who stayed neutral as best as she could, Joseph Downing had American ties. He would open his land and barn up to the American Soldiers as a Hospital. His property to this day still has dozens of American Soldiers buried there. So even though he did not partake or even want the fighting he did assist the Americans as best as he could. This would save him from being branded as a Loyalist as many Quakers how stayed neutral were. Eventually, he would be recognized as Patriot according to the Daughters of America.
Drinker and Downing Household 