<P> The Gaspee Affair was a significant event in the lead - up to the American Revolution . HMS Gaspee was a British customs schooner that had been enforcing the Navigation Acts in and around Newport , Rhode Island , in 1772 . It ran aground in shallow water while chasing the packet ship Hannah on June 9 near what is now known as Gaspee Point in Warwick , Rhode Island . A group of men led by Abraham Whipple and John Brown attacked , boarded , and torched the ship . </P>
<P> The Gaspee Affair was a significant event in the lead - up to the American Revolution . HMS Gaspee was a British customs schooner that had been enforcing the Navigation Acts in and around Newport , Rhode Island , in 1772 . It ran aground in shallow water while chasing the packet ship Hannah on June 9 near what is now known as Gaspee Point in Warwick , Rhode Island . A group of men led by Abraham Whipple and John Brown attacked , boarded , and torched the ship . </P>
who led the attack on the british schooner the gaspee
who led the attack on the british schooner the gaspee
Abraham Whipple John Brown
Abraham Whipple John Brown