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Beta Home Depot
Long before Home Depot and it’s notorious customer service, folks had problems with hardware stores. As we approach “Indian Summer” it’s appropriate to tell the tale of the late “Republic of Indian Stream.” They sure had a remarkable, perhaps even salient approach to dealing with bad customer service.
Here is one of my favourite stories from this forgotten chapter of North American history involving the “Streamers” fiasco into Canada:
The republic ceased to operate independently in 1835, when the New Hampshire Militia occupied the area, following a vote to be annexed by the Indian Stream Congress. The vote arose from fears regarding a prior incident in which a group of “Streamers” invaded Canada to free a fellow citizen who had been arrested by a British sheriff and judge over a matter of an unpaid hardware-store debt, as debtors’ prison laws were still in force at the time. The invading posse shot up the judge’s home where their comrade was being held, causing something of an international incident. The British Ambassador to the U.S. was astonished at the idea of a war with the States over a matter of a hardware-store debt and quickly agreed to engage in negotiations to resolve the long-simmering border disputes resulting from the poor wording of the Treaty of Paris.
One has to ask though, was it really right for a British Sheriff to come in and arrest someone over a debt and to cross international lines?
Likewise, was it really right to shoot up a Judge’s house over a debt?
In this case, you be the judge. It’s clear that sovereignty, property rights and the difference between civil/criminal offenses was as poorly defined back then as it is today. The bottom line in my opinion is that aggression is not the answer. At least over a Home Depot bill.
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