When we think about the American Revolution, we often jump to big moments like the Boston Tea Party or the Declaration of Independence.

But long before these historic moments, anti-loyalist sentiments were growing in backrooms across the New World.

Small groups of ordinary people began writing letters, sharing news and building trust, eventually evolving into a vast information sharing network known as the Committees of Correspondence.

Some of the earliest committees weren't born out of revolutionary sentiment, but from a lack of money due to the way England operated its colonies.

There was not enough British gold or silver in circulation for colonists to conduct business.

This led to a variety of bartering tools being used, such as foreign coins, random commodities, and colony printed bills.

These bills had a proclaimed value said to be worth a certain amount of British currency.

However, due to a lack of regulation rampant overprinting.

And each colony having their own system, the actual value fluctuated wildly as raw material trade in the colonies flourished.

The Crown became more and more frustrated with the volatility of colonial currencies, but rather than providing more currency to replace the bills and stabilize the markets, they simply made colonial currencies less powerful.

With the passage of the Currency Act in 1764, American colonies were now prohibited from using their own paper money to pay off debt.

Facing economic ruin.

Boston colonists formed the first committee to rally opposition to this act and other reforms.

Just a year later, the Crown passed the Stamp Act, which imposed a tax on all materials used in newspapers and legal documents.

This led to the formation of more committees, not only in Boston but in New York as well.

These groups had goals that were narrow in scope, only opposing specific legislation until later being dissolved after key issues were settled.

But as resentment to British rule grew, so did the aspirations of the colonists.

By 1767, tensions between the colonies and the motherland exploded with the passage of the Townsend Act, which not only imposed taxes on imported goods, but mandated that local judges be paid in British coins to ensure loyalty.

But it wasn't until 1772, when concerns over judicial independence and royal overreach peaked, that Samuel Adams helped form the first official Committee of Correspondence.

Unlike previous coalitions, this committee was not only focused on finding the key legislation, but also rallying against the Crown at large.

This new group set out with three goals.

To establish communication with assemblies and other colonies, to educate citizens on their rights, and to rally support for complete independence.

With the flame of rebellion lit.

It did not take long to spread.

By 1773, there were over 80 committees in Massachusetts alone.

And just one year later, 11 of the 13 colonies had committees exchanging information and planning with one another.

They communicated by handwritten letters and pamphlets delivered by horseback or by sea.

Now, the colonies weren't just neighbors.

They were allies.

By 1774, the Committees of Correspondence had hit their stride, and in many ways were perceived by colonies to have more local influence than the Crown itself.

Functioning as a sort of shadow government beneath the veil of British rule, the committees work together to conduct democratic elections, culminating in the First Continental Congress.

This laid the groundwork for America to declare its independence and begin the revolution, proving that the pen is truly mightier than the sword.

To quote Samuel Adams, it does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen on setting brush fires of freedom in the minds of men.

Funding for this video was made in part by a community engagement grant from the American Revolution, a film by Ken Burns, Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt.

You can stream the full film starting November 16th on the PBS app.

We'd like to thank the following funders.

Simple civics.

Brought to you in part by the Indiana State Teachers Association.