During the late eighteenth century, the movement of settlers in the backcountry created political, intellectual, and social influences.

The Paxton Boys were Scots-Irish who formed a vigilante group to retaliate in 1763 against local American Indians in the aftermath of the French and Indian War and Pontiac's Rebellion. The group of Paxton men raided a small settlement of Conestoga Indians in Lancaster County. The natives had long lived in peace with their neighbors and had not participated in any way in the current uprising. Six Indians were killed in the attack and fourteen taken captive; all of the prisoners were murdered several weeks later. The Paxton Boys are examples of social and intellectual effects.
The Regulator Movement, strongest in Orange, Granville, Halifax, and Anson counties were led by small farmers protesting the corruption and extortionate practices of sheriffs and court officials. The farmers first petitioned the assembly to recall its officers and when this failed, they formed an association pledged to pay only legal taxes and fees and to abide by the will of the majority. The Regulators won control of the provincial assembly in 1769, but with the provincial council, Governor William Tryon, and the courts against them they were unable to secure …show more content…
Although Massachusetts was the focal point of the crisis, other states experienced similar economic hardships. In particular, Continental Army and state militia veterans struggled, as many received little in the way of pay or reimbursement for their military service. Among these disgruntled former soldiers was the Continental Army Captain Daniel Shays, who led a violent uprising against debt collection in Massachusetts. Shays’ Rebellion can be considered an example of political and intellectual influences, from the economic hardships and the monetary debt caused by the American Revolutionary