Throughout history, riots have been set off by odd things: a Shakespeare play¹, the unseasonable wearing of straw hats, and even a satirical BBC radio broadcast. But eggnog? How did a Christmas beverage cause widespread destruction at the US Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1826? And what is eggnog, anyway?

What is Eggnog?

21st-century people in upstate New York might be pardoned for being puzzled at the term 'eggnog riot'. Isn't eggnog a rich, sweetened milk drink sold in cartons in their local grocery around Christmas? Yes. And no. In the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, eggnog usually contained serious amounts of alcohol. Here's a 1905 recipe for the stuff.

One of the best cooks in the south is responsible for the eggnog recipe which, although rather extravagant, is well worth the price of its manufacture. Beat the white and yolks of eighteen fresh eggs separately, the whites in a large bowl until both are as light as possible. While beating the yolks stir in with them eighteen tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar. Take fifteen wine glass fulls [sic] of best French brandy, six of old Jamaica rum and mix the spirits in a pitcher then pour the liquor very slowly on the yolks of the eggs and the sugar, stirring until thoroughly mixed. This process cooks the eggs². Then add, also very slowly, one quart of very rich cream and one of milk until the whole is well mixed. The mixture is now ready to pour into the punch bowl, when the whites of the eggs are added, a tablespoonful at a time, until the ingredients are all perfectly blended. The eggnog improves if kept an hour or two in a cold place before drinking, occasionally stirring it from the bottom of the bowl.
– 'The New Year's Eve Supper, Topeka State Journal, Saturday Evening, 30 December, 1905.

In England, where the recipe originated, eggnog was an elite drink. Who else could afford that many eggs and that much rich cream? In the early US republic, where upwards of 97% of white people listed their family profession as 'farmer'³, eggs and cream weren't that hard to obtain.

Eggnog was extremely popular among the elite plantation owners of the South. After all, they had slaves to do their tedious cooking. Because admission to the US Military Academy depended on political patronage, a fair number of the cadets came from this plantation class. They were used to being treated like aristocrats and they didn't like discipline. This probably had a lot to do with what happened.

Life at West Point

Much has been said against the moral tendency of the education acquired at West Point, but we think with great injustice... Since the Academy became settled under the present régime, there have been fewer disturbances there than at our colleges, generally speaking.
– Roswell Park, A Sketch of the History and Topography of West Point and the US Military Academy, 1840.

The United States Military Academy is located 50 miles (80 km) north of New York City at a strategic point overlooking the Hudson River. It was the site of a fort even before the military turned the location into a military school in 1802. Its purpose was to train army officers and its curriculum leaned heavily toward mathematics and engineering.

The course of study was roughly:

• First year: algebra, geometry, trigonometry, descriptive geometry, mensuration⁴, and French.
• Second year: Theory of perspective and shades and shadows, analytic geometry, conic sections, integral and differential calculus, practical surveying, French, geography, English grammar and rhetoric, drawing.
• Third year: natural and experimental philosophy: mechanics, optics, magnetism, electricity, astronomy, chemistry, landscape drawing.
• Fourth year: artillery and infantry tactics, military pyrotechny⁵, military engineering, civil engineering, mineralogy and geology, rhetoric, moral philosophy, political science, constitutional and international law.

Here is a sample text from their textbook on fortifications.

As the object of all defensive arrangements, whether artificial objects be raised, or the natural features only of a position be seized upon for the purpose, is to place troops under cover from the enemy's fire, and to enable them to deliver their own with effect, some knowledge of the chances of hitting a mark of given dimensions at various distances, as well as the influences which the undulations and character of the ground, and the physical and mental state of the party firing, may have upon their aim, are essential elements in estimating the advantages which they present.
– DH Mahan, A Treatise on Field Fortification, 1862 edition.

No wonder the students wanted to let off steam.

Discipline and Temptation

West Point, then as now, was part of the army, and under army discipline. Under the system introduced by Colonel Thayer, the head of the school, they could receive demerits for various infractions ranging from dirty rifles to jumping over bannisters. Students with too many demerits could be expelled. There were also court-martial offences, just as there were in the regular military. Among the things forbidden to students were getting drunk and smoking. That doesn't mean they didn't do those things. It meant they were sneaky about it.

One of the things they really weren't supposed to do was to exit the campus without permission and go over to Benny Havens' tavern a mile away in Buttermilk Falls. Benny was a jovial ex-army man who enjoyed the cadets' company. He'd ply them with flapjacks (pancakes) generously larded with butter and maple syrup. He'd also make punch – alcoholic punch. Hungry, cold⁶ cadets appreciated the hospitality, which they paid for in money or barter.

Right before Christmas in 1826, somebody smuggled two gallons of whiskey and a gallon of rum back to North Barracks. Most of the cadets involved, though not all of them, were from the South. During the day on 23 December, the cadets also stole food from the mess hall for their Christmas Eve party.

Late on Christmas Eve, parties took place in two rooms. Word got around about the illegal doings. The cadet in charge of North Barracks for the 24th, Nathaniel Eaton of Massachusetts, discussed the situation with the faculty member in charge, Captain Ethan Allen Hitchcock. By four in the morning, the parties were loud enough that Captain Hitchcock decided to investigate.

Cadet Jefferson Davis ran to warn the partying cadets, but he was too late. Captain Hitchcock told Davis to return to his room. He did, which was why he wasn't court-martialled later. Hitchcock read the cadets the Riot Act and ordered them to disperse. They didn't.

In the ensuring drunken brawl, which also spread to the South Barracks, there was considerable property damage. Two officers were assaulted. At least 70 cadets took part in the 'festivities'. Swords were employed and a pistol fired, but fortunately nobody was seriously hurt. However, reveille on Christmas morning was painful. Everybody was hung over.

Of course, questions were asked in Washington. The army sent out a team to court-martial the ringleaders. Following the investigation in spring of 1827, six cadets resigned, 19 were court-martialled, and 10 were expelled. Goody-two-shoes cadets like Robert E Lee stayed out of it and tried not to implicate anybody when questioned. Less virtuous participants like Jefferson Davis pointed fingers – he told on his roommate, who had a pistol.

Among those expelled were two future Confederate generals and one US Supreme Court justice. Jefferson Davis, who spent months confined to quarters and graduated in the bottom third of his class, later became the president of the short-lived Confederacy. Robert E Lee, the non-partier and model cadet, became a Confederate general, as well.

It may not be possible to draw any moral, political, or historical lessons from this saga, other than 'don't ever get so drunk that you trash the school.' But the Eggnog Riot remains an interesting footnote in US military history.

For Further Research

We recommend the not entirely serious article entitled 'Optimization of Eggnog using Design of Experiment and Machine Learning' by Claes et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci, NorthPole (2015) 12:25-31. (It's a handout, and a funny one, especially for scientists.)