Lexington and Concord

Another day while we were up in Boston Chris' aunts and uncle took us around on a tour of Lexington and Concord.  It was absolutely wonderful!  I learned so much and enjoyed seeing these monumental places from our nation's birth.  We started out at Lexington where the American Revolution started in 1775.  This statue is of a minute man - one of the colonists who were supposedly ready to bear arms at a moment's notice to fight for their freedom.  The Battle Green is behind the statue.

Across the street is Buckman Tavern where the minute men met up before the Battle of Lexington.  I believe many of them camped out here while they waiting for the British troops' arrival.

After seeing Lexington, we headed to the visitor center where we saw a great video of the events that took place on April 18th and 19th, 1775.  It really put things in perspective and told the story of Revere's and Dawes' midnight ride to warn Adams and Hancock that "the regulars [we]re coming".

Next stop on the tour was the site of Paul Revere's capture.  Revere and Dawes (along with another rider named Prescott) met up in Lexington and decided to ride to Concord to continue their warning.  Along the road Revere was captured.  Dawes and Prescott escaped and successfully continued on to Concord.  This picture is of Chris and I recreating the colonial militiamen's actions on the Battle Road where they hid behind bushes and stones and picked off British soldiers while they were retreating from Concord to Boston later that day.

As we continued down Battle Road, we came to Hartwell Tavern which was a tavern and home during the Revolution.  We met a redcoat and a colonist and got to take a tour of the house.  Unfortunately for Chris, the ceilings in the main room were a little low.  Since they didn't have heating in the 1700's they would build low ceilings in the main room so that they could trap the heat created by the hearth.  Good thing Chris didn't live in the 1700's!

We then made it to Concord where according to Ralph Waldo Emerson's poem the Concord Hymn, the "shot heard round the world" was fired at the Battle of Old North Bridge.  This picture is of Chris and me standing on the Old North Bridge.  Concord is as far as the British troops got before 4,000 militiamen and colonists banded together and forced them to retreat back to Boston.

While we were driving through Concord we also got to see Ralph Waldo Emerson's house.

Along with Louisa May Alcott's home.  This house is where she wrote Little Women.  Apparently inside they still have her desk where she worked while writing the book.  Later, the Alcotts sold the house to Nathaniel Hawthorne, who wrote The Scarlet Letter.

I have to say that if you ever make it up to visit Lexington and Concord that the visitor center in Minute Man National Historic Park in Lincoln shows an excellent 30 minute video detailing the actions of all major players on the night the British marched to Lexington.  It made the stops we made along the way so much more meaningful!