Mesier Homestead and Museum

The Mesier Homestead in Wappingers Falls is known for the 1777 “Wappingers Tea Party,” a local uprising against Loyalist merchant Peter Mesier. The site tells two stories: that of the Patriot Brower family, who built the house, and the Loyalist Mesier family, who inherited the property along with the political turmoil of the war. After Mesier opened a small store in the house, local residents protested the high prices he charged for tea. Over three days in May 1777, tensions escalated into violent attacks on the home, its property, and the family and servants living there—echoing the Boston Tea Party. The incident highlights how the Hudson Valley—strategically vital and socially diverse—was torn between Patriot and Loyalist factions.