Which group comprises the Sons of Liberty who opposed the Stamp Act?

• A. Sailors and ship captains
• B. Planters and farmers in colonial towns
• C. Artisans, shopkeepers, and small time merchants who opposed the Stamp Act
• D. Lawyers and merchants loyal to the Crown

Answer: (C)

The group the question is asking about is the core of the Sons of Liberty: artisans, shopkeepers, and small-time merchants who faced the direct hit of the Stamp Act on the printed materials they produced and used. These local tradespeople relied on affordable, accessible printing for business, contracts, licenses, and newspapers, so a tax on these items hit their livelihoods hard. They organized protests, spread anti-Stamp Act sentiment, and used boycotts to pressure stamp distributors and push Parliament to repeal the act. That lived experience—small-business interests opposing a tax that targeted everyday commercial and legal documents—best fits the description of who made up the Sons of Liberty.

Sailors and ship captains weren’t the defining members of this group, though they participated in colonial resistance in various ways. Planters and farmers tended to be more broadly involved in rural dissent, but they weren’t the primary economic base of the Sons of Liberty. Lawyers and merchants loyal to the Crown would align with colonial governance and taxation, not oppose it.