FRAMINGHAM — Given its proximity to Lexington and Concord, it’s no wonder Framingham has connections to the American Revolution.
Next month marks the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the first major military campaign of the American Revolution. At the Framingham History Center, historians are gearing up to share the stories of local residents who served in the war.
Executive Director Anna Tucker showed the Daily News various artifacts the center has from the Revolution. Among them is a Minuteman militia roster from Framingham, naming Peter Salem as a Minuteman in the battle.
Tucker explained that Salem, a formerly enslaved man born in Framingham (volunteer researcher Kevin Swope notes that Salem lived east of Hartford Street, which would be in Natick today), fought in both the Battles of Lexington and Concord and the Battle of Bunker Hill.
“Salem is credited as firing the shot that killed (British) Major (John) Pitcairn, which marked a monumental shift in the war,” Tucker said. She said Salem was bought by Major Lawson Buckminster, who immediately freed Salem to fight in the battle.
Swope explained that in the leadup to the Battles of Lexington and Concord, British General Thomas Gage sent two spies to survey the route to Worcester. The spies stopped at Buckminster Tavern in Framingham, where they observed militias mustering nearby.
At Framingham History Center, benign objects tell deep stories
At the Framingham History Center, Tucker and staff members showed objects that relate not only to Framingham history, but also to how some of Framingham’s earliest residents played a part in the American Revolution.
Among the rarer objects in the collection is a tune book belonging to Col. Thomas Nixon Jr., a Framingham boy who joined the Continental Army at 13 years old as a fifer. He saw action at Lexington and Concord before going on to serve under General George Washington in New York.
Nixon was the nephew of John Nixon, who settled north of Nobscot Mountain in Framingham. The Nixon family is the namesake of Nixon Road in Framingham and the John Nixon Elementary School in Sudbury.
The history center also has a recorder and scarf belonging to Thomas Nixon Jr.
Another Framingham connection is Crispus Attucks, a Framingham man of African and Native American descent who is said to have been the first man killed in the 1770 Boston Massacre, a “powder keg” moment ahead of the American Revolution, as Tucker explained.
History Center plans events for 250th anniversary of American Revolution
Along with the objects in its collection, the Framingham History Center is hosting events this spring in recognition of the American Revolution.
On Thursday, April 3, Swope will discuss how the Gage spy plot led to the Battles of Lexington and Concord. On May 8, Framingham State University history professor Joseph Adelman will host “Revolutionary Networks: Printers, Politics and the Power of the Press.”
Finally, the center will host a quilting event, “Stitching Revolution in Massachusetts: Quilting and Cotillions.” The event, which is funded by the MA250 group, will allow participants to design and sew quilt squares for a collaborative project inspired by Revolution themes, while learning about the era’s textile history from guest lecturers.
