To answer this question, I would like to approach it out of the perspective of Crispus Attucks. First, with a brief outline of what we know of his life up until his death on March 5, 1770. Second, with an attempt to chart his steps from the point he went outdoors to the moment he was killed. Through these two steps, I hope to shed some light in regards to the nature of the crowd that the British soldiers faced that cold night as well as to expand on Crispus Attucks role in the incident.

Who was Crispus Attucks?

Historians know very little about the life of Crispus Attucks. Like many minorities in colonial America, there are only fragmentary sources that can tell us a thing or two about the most rudimentary details about their lives. Crispus Attucks is no exception, despite his now well-known participation in one of the most high profile incidents leading up to the American War of Independence.

Most likely, Crispus (or Crispas) Attucks was born in Framingham, Massachusetts. Throughout court records and other contemporary testimony, he is described as bi-racial. Although the evidence is at best circumstantial, as argued by Mitch Kachun, it would be fair to say that Attucks was of African and Native American ancestry. It was common for Native American women in Massachusetts to enter relationships and marriage with both enslaved and free black men due to the scarcity of indigenous men after the many wars waged by colonists against Native American peoples in Massachusetts. It is therefore highly likely that Crispus Attucks had an African father and a Native American mother.

This poses an interesting question. Was Crispus Attucks a slave? Or an escaped slave? Although once more circumstantial, scholars believe that Crispus Attucks might very well be the escaped slave that William Brown of Framingham put out a notice for in the Boston Gazette and Country Journal (October 2, 1750):

Ran-away from his Master William Browne of Framingham, on the 30th of September, last, a Mulatto Fellow, about 27 years of age, named Crispas, six feet, two inches high, short curl’s Hair, his Knees nearer together than common; had on a light colour’d Bearskin Coat, plain brown Fustian Jacket, or brown all-Wool one, new Buckskin Breeches, blue Yarn Stockings, and a checked woolen Shirt.

Whoever shall take up said Run-away, and convey him to above said Master, shall have ten pounds, old Tenor Reward, and all the necessary Charges paid. And all Masters of Vessels and others, are herby cautioned against concealing or carrying off said Servant on Penalty of the Law. Boston, October 2, 1750.

If this is our Crispus Attucks, then he would have been born prior to 1730 and therefore been in his late 40s at the time of the Boston Massacre. Another interesting detail that Kachun points out in regards to the notice is the reference to "Masters of Vessels", that is, sea captains. It is possible, argues Kachun, that Crispus had prior experience with working on ships. If he didn't in 1750, he certainly would by 1770.

In the Boston press after the massacre, Attucks was identified as being "born in Framingham, but lately belonging to New-Providence [in the Bahamas], and was here in order to go to North Carolina." Attucks is continuously referred to as a "stranger", meaning someone who didn't reside in Boston. The evidence, therefore, is strong that Crispus Attucks was a sailor. If so, he wouldn't be alone in having a possible background as a slave. Ship crews during this time was multi-ethnic, with slaves and free men working side by side. It was a dangerous line of work but it was a perfect place to hide if you wanted to escape the attention of slave catchers. By becoming a sailor, Attucks joined a broader multi-cultural, multi-ethnic community with specific grievances and agendas aimed against the overreach of the British government. This would ultimately set Attucks on the course that led to the Boston Massacre.

Crispus Attucks on March 5, 1770

The Boston Massacre, as it became known to the world, was far from the cold-blooded execution that we see in the famous Paul Revere engraving. Instead, the incident on King's Street in Boston should be seen against the context of occupied Boston. Poverty in Boston was widespread during this time, and British taxes that had been broadly applied on the people since 1765 (the 1764 Sugar Act arguably being more of a special interest tax) had awakened popular discontent amongst the "lower sorts" (as they were called then) in Boston. Once Boston was occupied by British troops in 1768 to quell this discontent, it only aggravated it. The presence of British soldiers was a very clear and present obstacle in the day-to-day lives of ordinary Bostonians. Furthermore, the presence of British soldiers created additional strain on employment seeing as many soldiers tried to gain some additional money to supplement their meagre wages. For a town in deep recession after the French and Indian War and for the young men actively trying to find work, this only created more discontent. An incident that happened three days before the Boston Massacre will help us understand this better.

On March 2, 1770, a private from the 29th Regiment passed John Gray's ropewalks. A ropemaker at the ropewalk noticed the soldier and called out to him, asking if he was looking for a job. The soldier stopped and asked what kind of a job he was offering. Although the actual word used in reply by the ropemaker William Green vary in accounts, I feel like the words used by ropemaker Samuel Bostwick will suffice for a modern audience:

William Green, one of the hands, spoke to one of them, saying, "soldier, will you work?" The soldier replied, "yes." Green said, "then go and clean my s––t-house."

This was an insult that the soldier would not take. Botswick continues:

The soldier swore by the Holy Ghost that he would have recompense, and tarried a good while swearing at Green, who took no further notice of him, and then went off, and soon after returned to the ropewalk with a party of thirty or forty soldiers headed by a tall negro drummer, and challenged the rope makers to come out. All hands then present, being about thirteen or fourteen, turned out and beat them off, considerably bruised. And further saith not.

Tensions were already high before the March 5 incident took place. Furthermore, for a sailor like Crispus Attucks, the prospect of possibly being impressed in the Royal Navy was a very present risk. In 1747, Boston had endured a riot over Royal Navy impressments, a riot that became known as the Knowles Riot. The same discontent amongst sailors against the British government that existed in 1747 existed in 1770. What has become known to the general public today as 'mobs' can be more accurately described as multi-cultural, multi-ethnic crowds from a variety of backgrounds and ages but who all had one thing in common: Violent crowd actions was one of the most clear ways in which they could express their political opinions in a society where they were otherwise not allowed to vote or partake in the political process. Revolutionary Boston was not the calm image of a victim as the Bostonian elite wanted to portrayed it as but a place in which the people wanted to have its say and protest against perceived injustice, sometimes with violent or threatening actions towards representatives of the Crown, such as customs commissioners. Furthermore, violence could go both ways. On February 22nd 1770, a 11-year-old boy by the name of Christopher Seider was killed by Ebenezer Richardson, a known customs informant, after Seider had joined a crowd of boys that were throwing rocks at Richardson's house. This had created outrage amongst Whigs who arranged a grand funeral for the martyred boy, a funeral that would be overshadowed only by the funeral for the men who died on King's Street 11 days later.

Where do we find Crispus Attucks on March 5? The following account is based on a variety of primary sources, comprehensively put together by Mitch Kachun in his book (see sources below).

Crispus Attucks was having dinner at the time when he heard bells, like many other Bostonians, which would have taken him to the cold streets of Boston. At approximately 9 PM, he was seen approaching the beleaguered British soldiers by the Custom House together with a large group of men armed with "sticks and clubs". Between leaving his dinner behind and being seen approaching from Boston's North End, he had armed himself with two cordwood sticks, one which he gave to Patrick Keaton. Attucks is repeatedly described as being part of a group or at the head of a group of men, sometimes described as sailors, a point that John Adams was quick to take advantage of when he tried to paint Attucks as a ringleader ("... to lead this army with banners, to form them in the first place in Dock square, and march them up to King-street with their clubs ..."), something which there isn't enough evidence to support. In general, it was quite difficult not to notice Crispus Attucks in the crowds. He was a tall man, 6'2'', during a time in which men in Boston were shorter than they were today, and this could have had an effect in how people perceived during these chaotic moments. Additionally, his height and appearance would have made him an easy target for the soldiers. What is certain is that Attucks, like many of the other men he was with, were armed and aggravated, shouting and cursing at the soldiers. People were throwing snowballs, chunks of ice and even oyster shells at the soldiers while challenging them to fire and for people to kill them. What happened next isn't entirely certain, but it's likely that Attucks tried to attack the soldiers with his cardwood stick and that he did indeed grab a hold of a soldier's bayonet. In the words of Andrew, a slave: