Americans have a deep reverence for those who perished in military service. Communities remember those who died during their service by providing free military gravestones, placing flags on graves, and erecting monuments or memorials. The soldiers who died during the Revolutionary War were America’s first veterans. Here in Concord, there has been a long-standing tradition each Memorial Day of reading the names of those who died in service. Until 2023, only one name was read for the Revolutionary War: Reverend William Emerson. For as long as anyone could remember, he was the only person remembered by the town for dying during his service in the Revolutionary War.
