Fries Rebellion

Watch the trailer!

The red-carpet film premiere /gala was held at
Wind Creek Bethlehem on August 25, 2024.

The following film distribution plans are underway:
   1. Meetings with school curriculum directors
   2. Film festival entries
   3. Screenings at local venues
   4. Evaluations of potential streaming services. (Will be listed here when available.)

Macungie Township in the late 1790s was a hotbed of patriotic protest. Local farmers and others joined together to voice strident opposition to the way they perceived the new nation was going under President John Adams’s administration, and rebelled against a new federal tax. Named after its leader, John Fries (pronounced “freeze”), the Fries Rebellion made waves at the highest levels of the new government.

Be part of this exciting adventure to bring The Fries Rebellion film to schools and the public!

Thank you for your support!

The LMTHS is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All contributions are considered tax-deductible for federal tax purposes.

Click here for information about the: Fries Rebellion; map; or references.

What a fantastic movie! The very clever script makes a 200-year old story of a tax revolt suspenseful and entertaining as well as educational. The film shows how fun it is to learn about the Lehigh Valley’s rich history—and offers, at the same time, a tour of the Lehigh Valley’s still beautiful landscapes. I encourage everybody interested in how to bring America’s early history alive to see this film!

Scott Paul Gordon
Andrew W. Mellon Chair
Professor of English
Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015
The Letters of Mary Penry: A Single Moravian Woman in Early America

This movie offers a wonderful and captivating introduction to a significant and often overlooked part of Pennsylvania and national history: Fries’s rebellion. The rebellion itself reflected the tension between the federal government and local communities in the early years of the new Republic, a tension that has never entirely gone away. By setting the action of the movie in both the present day and in the eighteenth century, "The Fries Rebellion" succeeds in showing how history still shapes who we are today.

Dr. Lawrence Morris
Associate Professor, Department of English
Albright College
Reading, PA 19604

In anticipation of America250 celebrations to be held nationwide in 2026, the Lower Macungie Township Historical Society (LMTHS) produced a special film that celebrates one of the region's defining periods.

LMTHS partnered with award-winning production companies, In the Wee hours and ubiFire Video Productions, to produce a 32-minute film delving into 'The Fries Rebellion.' The professionally produced and edited educational tool for K-12 teachers in Eastern Pennsylvania will be distributed nationwide via streaming services, film festivals, in museums and historical societies, and for tourism groups from around the world. The film provides insights into the ongoing, unfolding American experiment, highlights aspects of local heritage, and will be a legacy for generations to come.

In this docudrama, places and events of the Fries Rebellion are seen through the eyes of a modern schoolgirl. Audiences of all ages will be entertained and informed about an insurrection that occurred in 1798-1799, primarily in the German-speaking populations in and surrounding the “Lehigh Hills” region of then Northampton, eastern Berks, upper Bucks, and upper Montgomery counties of Pennsylvania. Several of the scenes will be feature original sites that still exist, including the Red Lion Inn (formerly Enoch Robert's Tavern - Quakertown), Jamision Publick House (formerly Conrad Mark's Tavern - Geryville), Hendrixson's furniture store (formerly John Shymer's Tavern - Shimersville), Buckeye Tavern (formerly Henry Shankweiler's Tavern - Macungie), 1760 House (formerly Peter Trexler's Tavern - Trexlertown), Commix Hotel (formerly Martin Ritter's Tavern - Allentown), and the 1758 Sun Inn (Bethlehem).

Fries Rebellion Film Partners
Alburtis-Lockridge Historical Society
Bethlehem Area School District
Borough of Alburtis
Borough of Quakertown
Merrill and Nancy Brenner
Buckeye Tavern
The Civic Theatre of Allentown
Costco
County of Northampton
Discover Lehigh Valley
Domaine Pterion: Vineyard & Winery
East Penn School District
Emmaus Historical Society
Folino Estate Winery
Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation
Professor Scott Paul Gordon, Ph.D. (Lehigh University)
Hendrixson's Furniture
Historic Rescue Photography
Carson Kressley
Lehigh County
Attorney Michael S. Horvath, II
In the Wee hours Production Company
Jacobsburg Historical Society
Russell Hoffman
Doug and Sandra Peters
Jamison Publick House
The Knauss Homestead
Lehigh Valley Passport to History
Longswamp Township Historical Society
Lower Macungie Township
Blake and Marilyn Marles
McCoole's at the Red Lion Inn
The Mercer Museum
Mister Bill's Poultry
Northampton County Historical & Genealogical Society
The Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center
Quakertown Historical Society
Rising River Brewing
Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center
Jason Searock
1760 PubNGrille
Christopher Stress
The Sun Inn Preservation Society
Two Rivers Brewing Company
ubiFire Video Productions
Upper Milford Historical Society
WAWA