Minuteman National Park

The Minuteman National Park in Concord and Lexington, Massachusetts is a favorite historical site for me. I fondly cherish the memories of a trip to this park as one of my most meaningful elementary school class trips. As I visited again, I could relive the inspiration of my youth to be the best patriot possible. I am moved to re-read “April Morning” by Howard Fast and “Johnny Tremain”. I feel once again the stirrings to be filled with noble virtue as the men and women who fought for and formed our country. I still wonder in admiration of those rustic times that formed the beginning of our country.

I first visited the Old North Bridge in Concord where the “shot heard ‘round the world” was fired. It is a small wooden bridge over the Concord River where the British first encountered the rag-tap colonial militia. The minutemen were a rather-well trained group of men who tended their farms and were ready at a moment’s notice to come to the aid of their countrymen. No one knows which side fired the first shot, but it set the forces of aggression upon one another irrevocably. More colonists died than the British. It seems clear that the British were not intent upon entering into conflict, but as event escalated it became inevitable. A gravesite of British soldiers is located next to the Minuteman Monument (erected by Daniel Chester French, sculptor of the Lincoln Memorial) at the Bridge.

The Buttrick House and the remains of Barrett’s Farm are nearby the battleground. The Buttrick site is turned into a gift shop and visitor’s center.

The Old Manse sits nearby the North Bridge. This is famous for the birth of the Transcendental movement in the States. Thoreau, Hawthorne, and the Alcotts established a literary presence in the area; a new school of thought arose from the spiritual writings of the poets and authors who gathered there. Walden Pond is only a few miles away.

The Battle Road stretches for three miles from the Wayside to Fiske Hill. The British retreated to Boston under pursuit from the American colonial militias that assembled from nearby towns. The colonists engaged in guerilla warfare against a well-tuned traditionalist Royal British army that was used to fighting in European theatres. The British suffered severe losses en route to Boston where the HMS Somerset provided artillery protection against the militia expeditions.

Dawes, Revere, and Prescott left Boston by horseback to inform the neighboring towns of the British advance. At 1:30 a.m. on April 19, 1775, the British patrol stops the three. Revere is captured, but Dawes flees back to Lexington while Prescott escapes to continue to Concord and beyond. The spot of Revere’s capture is prominent. The expedition arrived at 7 a.m. on April 19^th.

A dozen preserved houses line the Battle Road, such as Jacob Whittmore and Captain William Smith’s houses. The Hartwell Tavern is well-preserved. Samuel Hartwell was a fairly well-off colonist who had a tavern in his house and was a well-know stop along the way. Information about the British plans was disseminated from his tavern. Today, the house has re-enactments of skirmishes and men and women in colonial attire will provide visitors with knowledge of the events of 1775.

The Orchard House and The Wayside gained fame in the 1800’s through Louisa May Alcott (Little Women), Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Margaret Sidney (Five Little Peppers.) The Wayside was an important sanctuary for former slaves as they travelled north through the underground railroad.

The park today preserves many of these sites along a pedestrian and bike trail. The paths are well groomed and feel spacious. New England style stone walls line the pathways that showcase fields that have been in continuous use since the 1600’s.

I feel refreshed. I like getting in touch with this part of our history. I’m sure I have a romanticized notion of it, but that is O.K. It is what I need right now. I will certainly return here in a few weeks when the autumn colors are their most vibrant. I’m sure it will be spectacular.