Settlers in the American backcountry often protested to express the grievances with the Federal Government and the regulations and policies they set in place. Taxes of goods and crops were the root for the Whiskey and Shay Rebellions. The Shay Rebellion raised awareness for the need of s a stronger central government. Referring to the Shay Rebellion, historian Leonard L. Richards quotes, "fundamentally altering the course of U.S. history." Farmers in Massachusetts in 1786 were fed up with the government. They considered this government to be a replica of the government they just freed themselves from in 1781. They were fed up with the civil rights suppression and taxes. The Massachusetts government required that taxes be paid in hard money,
