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| Paul Revere statue and Old North Church |
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere.
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.
When poet
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote those lines in 1862, he was correct -- hardly
anyone had heard of Paul Revere. The
early histories of the American Revolution didn’t even mention him.
But the poem
changed that. Overnight, Paul Revere
became one of America’s greatest heroes. Today, he is practically an industry
in Boston. You can tour his house, see
his portrait, buy reproductions of his silver work, walk the streets he walked,
have a drink in his favorite tavern and even leave pennies on his grave. In a city that spawned a revolution, there is
no greater figure than Paul Revere -- a fact that would have surprised every
Boston resident in 1775, the modest Paul Revere most of all.
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| Paul Revere by John Singleton Copley |
On a day
trip in Boston, it’s quite easy to follow the dramatic story. Every significant building associated with the famous ride has
been preserved and can be toured.
Like many a
good story, this one begins in a tavern.
In 1775, Boston
was a powderkeg. Three thousand British
soldiers patrolled the streets,
trying to crush a growing rebellion, while a rag-tag
group of rebels called the Sons of Liberty made their secret headquarters in
the Green Dragon Tavern.
The original
tavern was torn down in 1854, but a reconstruction has been built nearby at 11
Marshall Street. Although not an exact
reproduction, it does have the feel of a Colonial inn with its dark wood beams
and old pub exterior. A mural inside
helps you imagine the Green Dragon as it must have appeared in 1775, filled
with rebels engaged in deep discussion while smoking clay pipes and downing
tankards of ale.
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| The Green Dragon Tavern |
On the
afternoon of April 18, a 13-year-old boy named Sam Ballard overheard two
British officers talking about a raid to Lexington and Concord to arrest
revolutionary leaders Sam Adams and John Hancock. Ballard told the landlord at the Green
Dragon, who sent a messenger to Paul Revere’s house. You too can
walk to Paul Revere’s house from the Green Dragon in about 10 minutes.
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| Paul Revere's house is the oldest in Boston |
Paul Revere lived here for 30 years
(1770-1800). The gray dwelling with its
second story overhang was restored in 1907 to reflect both its original
17th-century appearance and the later Revere period.
It is now a museum where on self-guided tours, it is possible to rub shoulders with hundreds of international visitors, as you squeeze up narrow stairways to view rooms and exhibits that tell the story.
It was from
this house that Paul Revere gathered his spurs and riding boots and set off on
a 20-mile ride to Lexington to spread the alarm. His first
stop was right around the corner at the Old North Church. Built in 1723, it is Boston’s oldest standing
church. Though the steeple has been
rebuilt several times, it is today as tall and white against a blue sky as it
would have been 225 years ago. A
small
museum continues the tale.
In 1775,
Boston was built on a neck of land completely surrounded by water. If the British sealed off the neck, an
express rider would be trapped.
The answer was to send the message across the river by light. Revere planned for the church sexton, Robert Newman, to hang lanterns in the Old North, which offered the highest steeple in the city. The code was one lantern if the British were leaving for Lexington by land, two if by sea.
About 10 p.m., with two lanterns dimly glowing across the water and the moon rising, Revere had himself rowed across the Charles River, directly under the guns of an English ship. On the other side, associates tipped off by the lanterns provided him with a swift New England saddlebred horse named Brown Beauty, and he set off for Lexington.
A hurry of hoofs in
a village street,
A shape in the
moonlight, a bulk in the dark,
And beneath, from
the pebbles, in passing, a spark
Struck out by a
steed flying fearless and fleet;
That was all! And yet, through the gloom and the light,
The fate of a
nation was riding that night.
It was here, at the Hancock-Clarke House, that Paul Revere finally arrived at midnight, his horse’s flanks coated with sweat and blood. A sergeant guarding the house told him to stop making noise, there were people sleeping.
“Noise!” Revere shouted. “You’ll have noise enough before long. The
Regulars are coming out!”
This was as
close as he ever came to the famous, “The British are coming!” Actually, that
would have been an insane thing to say.
In 1775, everyone in
Massachusetts was British.
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| The Hancock-Clarke House, Lexington |
The pretty
yellow house where Hancock and Adams were staying has been preserved with
furnishings and portraits owned by the Hancock family. Of particular interest are exhibits from the
coming battle, which include William Diamond’s drum -- the very instrument the
young man beat to call the militia to Lexington Green.
Just a
five-minute walk away, Lexington Green is a traditional New England town
center, surrounded by white houses and churches. On the edge of the green is the Buckman
Tavern. It was here that Revere
“refreshid” himself (no doubt with a tankard of ale) before setting off yet
again, this time to spread the alarm to Concord. The Buckman Tavern is also where the militia
gathered to ward off the cold night waiting for the arrival of the British.
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| Buckman Tavern |
Revere, by
this time, was racing for Concord. Long
stretches of the road have been preserved as Minute Man National Historical Park. Lined with stonewalls and an occasional 18th
Century building or tavern, it’s a wonderful walk where little has changed
since 1775.
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| Battle Road in Minute Man National Historical Park looks like it did in 1775. |
But for the
British it was too late. Revere had
warned Lexington and his companion riders William Dawes and Dr. Samuel Prescott
(left out of the poem because their names are harder to rhyme) got through to
Concord. When the red coats finally
arrived in Lexington, there was an small band of minute men waiting for them.
You know the rest. In the books you have read,
How the British
Regulars fired and fled, --
How the farmers
gave them ball for ball,
From behind each
fence and farm-yard wall.
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| Depiction of the battle at the Bloody Angle, Minute Man National Historical Park |
What
happened in the next few hours changed the world. On Lexington Green, as the redcoats and
armed rebels faced each other, someone fired a shot, and the tired British
soldiers began shooting, killing eight colonists before they could be ordered
to stop. The redcoats marched on to
Concord, but enraged minute men followed, and at the North Bridge, the rebels
fired back. The British began a
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| Lexington Green |
By nightfall 273 of the King’s troops were killed, wounded or missing, along with 95 casualties among the colonialists. It is impossible to overestimate the shocking effect the high casualties of this battle had on both sides. In today’s U.S. population, it would be the equivalent of 30,000 troops killed or wounded in a single day.
There was no
going back. The American Revolution had
begun. And it had begun to a large
extent because of Paul Revere. His
network of express riders were able to spread the message so well, that by the
end of the day almost 4,000 militia had mobilized and fought in the battle,
coming from as far as 20 miles away.
So through the
night rode Paul Revere;
And so through the
night went his cry of alarmTo every Middlesex village and farm, --
A cry of defiance and not of fear,
A voice in the darkness, a knock at the door,
And a word that shall echo forevermore!
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| Longfellow's House where he wrote the poem, Cambridge MA |
Strangely
enough, Paul Revere’s role was forgotten for almost a century. In 1862, during the bleak days of the Civil
War, Longfellow was looking for a subject that would give the Union hope. He
found his inspiration in the forgotten tale of a silversmith express
rider.Although the poem is a thrilling account of the ride, it is the closing that best captures why Paul Revere’s popularity has endured into the 21st century, and will probably do so forevermore.
For, borne on the
night-wind of the Past,
Through all our
history, to the last,
In the hour of
darkness and peril and need,
The people will
waken and listen to hear
The hurrying
hoof-beats of that steed,
And the midnight
message of Paul Revere.
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| Old State House on the Freedom Trail |
Best Book To Read First: Paul Revere’s Ride by David Hackett Fischer, Oxford University Press 1994, is the best account of the ride and the fighting at Lexington and Concord. It reads like a novel with spies, daring escapes and bloody battles.
Freedom Trail,
www.thefreedomtrail.org This 2.5 mile long walk in downtown Boston
connects 16 historic sites. The walk is
marked by either a series of red bricks or a painted red stripe down the
sidewalk and is easy to follow as you move from the site of the Boston Common
to the Boston Massacre and on to Bunker Hill.
An interesting stop is Granary Burying Ground, where Paul Revere, John
Hancock and Sam Adams are laid to rest, and the Old State House, built in 1713. Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market are two of
the city’s biggest tourist stops, and are along the trail and worth a
look. Don’t assume everything
interesting is on the trail – there’s many great things to see a block or two
off. The trail was laid out in the 1950s
and many things have changed…but it’s a good start.
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| Tour group at Paul Revere's grave, Granary Burying Ground |
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| Union Oyster House |
The Paul Revere House, 19 North
Square, www.paulreverehouse.org It doesn’t look like much from the outside,
but go through the gate there’s an interesting courtyard and the interior rooms
are well worth the $3.50 entrance fee.
Some of the rooms have the original floorboards.
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| Lexington Green |
Old North Church, 193 Salem
Street, Open every day from 9 a.m. to 6
p.m. www.oldnorth.com It’s beautiful inside and out. The Paul Revere statue is located in a park
behind the church. As you walk around
Boston and Charleston, always keep an eye out for the church tower. It was the highest building in Boston in 1775
(which is why it was picked for the signal lamps) and is still one of the most
prominent buildings in the North End Italian district. The neighborhood is even
better. There are five Italian bakeries within a musket shot, and dozens of
Italian restaurants nearby.
Hancock-Clarke House, Lexington contains
furnishings and portraits owned by the Hancock and Clarke families and exhibits
from the battle of Lexington. 36 Hancock
Street, Lexington. www.lexingtonhistory.org
Buckman Tavern, across from Battle
Green in Lexington, appears very much today like it did on the fateful morning
in 1775. www.lexingtonhistory.org
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| Old North Bridge, Concord |
Longfellow National Historic Site, preserves
the home in which poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow lived from 1837 to 1882,
including the time when he wrote his famous poem about Paul Revere. George Washington was headquartered here for
16 months from 1775 to 1776. Located in
Cambridge at 105 Brattle St.
USS Constitution. Built in 1797, this is the oldest warship
still floating in the world. The copper sheathing for the 54-gun frigate was
done by Paul Revere, who dabbled in many metal trades including engraving and
early dentistry. Free tours let you
stroll the two gun decks. Next door is
the Constitution Museum which has interactive displays on the great battles of
“Old Ironsides,” as well as fun exhibits on how she was constructed and how a
three-masted frigate was sailed. Look for a new scrimshaw and cane to be added to the ship's Time Line exhibit. They belonged to my great-grandfather, Charles Ball. The cane is dated: July 4, 1841, Bay of Callao -- the day of a notorious party on board where the crew was allowed to get drunk to celebrate the Fourth and their imminent return home. Certainly an event one of my relatives would think worthy of commemorating! http://www.ussconstitutionmuseum.org/
