preached equal justice and a general diffusion of knowledge as essential "pillars supporting the sacred temple of liberty." A primary purpose of the societies was to disseminate political information, as their members believed ignorance to be the greatest threat to democracy. They worked closely with republican newspaper editors by publishing numerous letters, editorials and essays. "To support and perpetuate the EQUAL RIGHTS OF MAN" was the New York society's "great object," and toward that end, it would "constantly express our sentiments." The "Equal Rights of Man" meant to them the right to freedoms of speech, press, and assembly; the right to criticize governmental representatives and to demand an explanation of their public acts; and the right to publish their reactions in a free press. Born from the grassroots organization of the Sons of Liberty, the societies challenged existing notions of the social and political hierarchy. The societies united disparate groups of people from different classes, usually the lower and middle classes, which were made up of farmers, artisans, mechanics, and common laborers were led by richer merchants, local politicians, militia captains, naval officers, doctors, lawyers, and printers. Their persistence of egalitarian and republican thought revolutionized ideas about liberty through the Jacksonian era and beyond. The members often included dissenting teachers and theologians who were striving to create a more progressive, humanitarian, and enlightened society. Their ideas were also influenced by classical and modern republicanism, particularly the works of Aristotle and Machiavelli, and by the 'Common Sense' philosophy of the Scottish Enlightenment. That philosophy led the societies to oppose many of the Federalist Party's policies. The societies advocated both a system of publicly-funded and locally-controlled education for all classes and a broadening of the franchise. Standing to Jefferson's ideological left, they advocated a much more democratic political agenda than he supported, including attempts to create a permanent organization of popular dissent directed against the federal government and an educational philosophy based on a dialectical and democratic approach to learning. Pennsylvania frontier and Whiskey Rebellion Most societies were urban, but three formed on Pennsylvania's western frontier: the Democratic Republican Society of the County of Washington, the Society of United Freemen of Mingo Creek, and the Republican Society at the Mouth of the Youghiogheny. Members dreamed of a yeoman farmer empire and thought that the western farmers were exploited by wealthy easterners, particularly merchants and land speculators. They demanded justice and were careful