Boston Tea Party American Battlefield Trust December 16, 1773 The Boston Tea Party occurred as colonial activists disguised as Mohawk Indians boarded British ships anchored in Boston Harbor and dumped 342 containers of expensive tea into the water. The Boston Tea Party: The Night the Harbor Became a Teapot By the winter of 1773, the relationship between Great Britain and its thirteen American colonies had deteriorated into a tense standoff. Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum (Boston) Visitor Information & Reviews