The Midnight Ride: Forewarned is Forearmed

March 28, 2025

In late winter and early spring of 1775, General Gage, the British military governor of Massachusetts, received orders from London to arrest colonial leaders and seize rebel arms and ammunition stockpiles. Contemplating his options, Gage prioritized the recovery of four brass cannons, which had been stolen from Boston and reportedly hidden in Concord, along with stockpiles of muskets, ammunition, and gunpowder. His plan called for seven hundred elite troops under Lieutenant Colonel Francis Smith to march to Concord on the evening of April 18, with orders to destroy all military supplies while minimizing harm to civilian property. A small party of officers was also dispatched ahead to intercept any messengers, ensuring no warnings reached Concord ahead of the troops.

The Battles of Lexington and Concord: The Revolution Begins

The Battles of Lexington and Concord, fought on April 19, 1775, marked the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War. The British, seeking to suppress a growing colonial rebellion, dispatched 700 elite troops under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Francis Smith to seize a stockpile of arms and ammunition in Concord, Massachusetts. News of this impending operation quickly spread through the colonial network, alerting local militias. The operation began with British troops crossing the Charles River to Cambridge and marching toward Concord under darkness. The confrontation began at Lexington Green, where a small contingent of colonial militiamen, under the command of Captain John Parker, faced a significantly larger British force. As the Regulars approached the town common, Parker told his men to “Stand your ground, don’t fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here!”1

Patriots' Day is Coming!

Don't miss these exciting events as you plan your Patriots' Day visit to Concord, Lexington, and the surrounding towns.

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“I Haven’t a Man Who is Afraid to Go” The Acton Minutemen on April 19, 1775

The Acton Minutemen were formed at the end of 1774 at a town meeting. Tensions with England had grown to a boil, and towns everywhere were responding by training their men to fight. The town of Acton, which had previously been part of Concord, chose their best men from their existing militia units to form the new Minute Company, and those men voted 30-year-old Isaac Davis as their captain.It was the law of the land that every man between the ages of 16 and 60 was required to serve in his town’s militia. They were not paid and met twice each year to conduct marching and musket drills. By contrast, minute companies were paid and met twice each week to drill and train and were arguably among the best trained soldiers in the area when hostilities broke out in April of 1775.