Minute Man National Historic Park: Who Were the Minute Men?

Minute Man National Historic Park is located 22 miles outside the city of Boston and preserves important sites from the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the opening battles of the American Revolution on April 19, 1775. The park extends from just west of Lexington and follows, almost without interruption, the road to Concord and encompasses such historic sites as the location where Paul Revere was captured by British soldiers, Merriam’s Corner, and the Old North Bridge in Concord.

In our continuing series featuring Minute Man National Historic Park leading up to Patriots Day, we feature a video describing who were “minute men” and what it meant to be a member of the “militia” in colonial times.

The “minute man” formed the core of the militia that turned out on April 19, 1775 to oppose the British in their expedition to seize powder and arms from the town of Concord. The “redcoats” initially thought of the colonial militia as being untrained and of little threat to the King’s well trained forces; by the end of the engagements of the Battle of Lexington and Concord, his majesty’s forces thought quite differently.

If you would like to learn more about the Battle of Lexington and Concord, David Hackett Fischer’s Paul Revere’s Ride is the authoritative source and reference used by Revere’s Riders storytellers as a basis for their history talks at our events.

If you’d like to hear the story of the Battle of Lexington and Concord in person, it is typically the history told at our Rifle 125 events. Upcoming Rifle 125 events:

Jan

19

Basic Rifle: Fundamentals – One Day (Audubon, PA)

1-day Basic Rifle event at Lower Providence Rod & Gun Club near Audubon PA.

Feb

1

Rimfire Only Basic Rifle – One Day (Laramie, WY)

1-day Basic Rifle event at Laramie Rifle Range near Laramie, WY.