Following are events scheduled in Minute Man National Historical Park (MMNHP) and other sites to commemorate events surrounding Patriots Day.
Saturday, April 9
The Capture of Paul Revere: A Dramatic Narrative
MMNHP Visitors Center at 2:45 p.m. or Capture Site at 3 p.m.
March with the Lincoln Minute Men along Battle Road or meet at the capture site where Paul Revere’s ride ended in Lincoln. See Revere, Samuel Prescott, William Dawes, Mary Hartwell, Catharine Louisa Smith, and Major Mitchell tell the true story, despite poetic efforts by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to tell a different tale. Music and musket fire. For all ages.
Saturday, April 16
Battle Road: Civilian Evacuation & Battles
Evacuation scenario at the home of William and Catharine Louisa Smith, 9:30 a.m. – noon.
Battle reenactment at Parker’s Revenge, MMNHP, noon–1 p.m.
Battle of Tower Park, 1200 Massachusetts Ave., Lexington, 4 p.m.
Families prepare to evacuate their homes on April 19, 1775. Later, hundreds of British and Provincial soldiers recreate the running battle along the deadly stretch of road through Lincoln, from Elm Brook Hill to the Lexington border. Then both sides regroup to battle again at Tower Park in Lexington.
Sunday, April 17
Alarm & Muster
Lincoln Public Library lawn, 7 p.m.
A Lincoln resident during the Revolutionary War reminisces about the fateful early hours of April 19, 1775. Capt. William Smith arrives on horseback to alarm the citizens of Lincoln. Bells ring, drums roll, and families say anxious goodbyes, as the Lincoln Minute Men assemble for musket drill and firing, and receive their orders to march.
Monday, April 18
Dawn Tribute & March to the Concord Parade
Outside Bemis Hall, 6:45 a.m.; Concord parade, 9 a.m.
The Lincoln Minute Men salute the Patriots buried in the Old Meeting House Burying Ground as they emerge from the mists for roll call. Fifers play a lament and the muskets fire a volley. Then join the Minute Men on their walk to Concord along Sandy Pond Road (three miles) amid colonial music and musket fire. All ages welcome.
Sunday, April 24
Lincoln Salute: A Festival of Fife & Drum Music
Pierce Park, 1:30–3 p.m. (in case of rain, see the Parks and Rec website)
The Lincoln Minute Men host fife and drum groups from far and wide in a musical performance for your enjoyment. Bring your picnic basket and lawn chairs for rousing entertainment.
Old Burying Ground Tribute
Pierce House, 3 p.m.
March with the Lincoln Minute Men and British Regulars from Pierce House to the Old Burying Ground on Lexington Road to honor the Patriot dead and the five British soldiers killed in Lincoln along the Battle Road. Mary Hartwell and Catharine Louisa Smith tell their stories of burying British soldiers, an enslaved soldier tells how he gained his freedom, and a British mother laments the loss of her son. Ceremonies include music and musket salutes.