Editing Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania (section)

===Whiskey Rebellion===
The [[Whiskey Rebellion]] was a major test for the new government of the United States following the Revolution. The citizens of western Pennsylvania, mostly near [[Washington, Pennsylvania]], were not pleased with the [[excise]] [[tax]] on [[liquor]] and distilled drinks. This tax had been proposed by [[United States Secretary of the Treasury]] [[Alexander Hamilton]], passed by [[United States Congress|Congress]], and signed into law by President Washington in 1791. The tensions of the whiskey tax intensified over the next three years and in 1794 there was a state of [[insurrection]] in the area. Thirteen thousand militiamen under the direct command of George Washington were sent to put down the insurrection. They passed through the Ohiopyle area on their way to arrest the rebels. The rebels "could never be found," according to [[Thomas Jefferson]], but the militia rounded up twenty prisoners, clearly demonstrating [[Federal government of the United States|Federal]] authority in the national government. The men were imprisoned, where one died, while two were convicted of [[treason]] and sentenced to death by hanging. Washington, however, [[pardon]]ed them on the grounds that one was a "simpleton" and the other "insane." The military suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion set a precedent that U.S. citizens who wished to change the law had to do so peacefully through [[constitution]]al means; otherwise, the government would meet any threats to disturb the peace with force.