209 Magazine - Issue #51

Page 38

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LEXINGTON T

he Minute Man stands ever at the ready, musket in hand, poised to defend his rights. Behind him flaps the American flag, a summary of all he fought and died for in the American Revolution. It is here at the triangular-shaped Battle Green in Lexington, Massachusetts, that our nation’s fight for independence began.

THE BIRTHPLACE OF AMERICAN LIBERTY By CLAUDIA NEWCORN

Who Fired First? On the morning of April 19, 1775, 77 militia under the leadership of Captain John Parker defiantly faced 700 redcoated British Regulars under the command of Major John Pitcairn on Lexington Common (later renamed Lexington Battle Green). Each town in what was known as the Massachusetts Bay Colony, had a volunteer militia company, comprised of men age 16-60. In 1774, the Provincial Congress, led by John Hancock, recommended every town form “minute companies” that would be ready to march at a moment’s notice. The term Minute Men was often used interchangeably with militia.

Capt. Parker did not intend to fight, according to historians, but to only make a display of patriotic resolve. He famously declared, “Stand your ground, don’t fire unless fired upon, but if there means to be a war, let it begin here.” At Maj. Pitcairn’s orders to disperse, the Minute Men slowly obeyed. Then a shot rang out, followed by a fusillade as the British soldiers, ignoring commands to stop, began firing at the fleeing Minute Men. When the battle was done, eight of them lay dead, 10 were wounded. Nobody ever determined who actually fired

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that first shot, but it triggered a war that would last more than eight years, and cost over 45,000 people their lives. 300 Years of History Originally settled in 1642, Lexington, just 14 miles Northwest of Boston, was incorporated in 1713. Proud of their role in the

Revolutionary War, the town has preserved much of its heritage through the restoration and maintenance of sites and original 18th Century historic homes that witnessed the battle and hosted such famous patriots as John Hancock and Samuel Adams; some are open to the public on a seasonal basis.

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