The road to American independence was forged on Battle Road. Today, as you travel through Arlington, Lexington, Lincoln, and Concord, you’ll journey through the very heart of the Revolution, where courage first challenged tyranny.
More than a historical landmark, the Battle Road Byway serves as a reminder that change doesn’t come quickly. The legacy of April 19, 1775, continues to resonate, not only in the context of the American Revolution but also in the ongoing revolutions of ideas, technology, and culture that these towns have witnessed over centuries. It’s a journey that links the past to the present, reminding us of the power of ordinary people to change the course of history.
The Battle Road Byway traces the route of the British regulars on April 19, 1775, the day the day the American Revolution began with ”the shot heard ‘round the world.” This historic path not only marks the start of American independence but also serves as a testament to the ongoing revolutions-literary, environmental, and technological-that have shaped the towns along its route and continue to this day.
Two and a half centuries later, in the towns of Arlington, Lexington, Lincoln, and Concord, we remember and honor the courage of those who fought in the opening battles of the American Revolution.
The Battles and the Communities
- Lincoln: Home to the Hartwell Tavern and Bloody Angle. Over 200 Lincoln residents served in the Revolutionary War. On April 18, 1775, Paul Revere was captured by British soldiers in Lincoln while on his way to Concord.
- Lexington: Home to the Battle Green, where the American Revolution began. On the morning of April 19, 1775, approximately seventy members of Lexington’s Lexington’s town militia faced down eight hundred British troops on Lexington Green. The British army was marching to Concord, where they expected to confiscate a stockpile of weapons intended to be used for rebellion. The troops stopped on the Lexington Green and faced the Lexington militia. A shot was fired. Nobody knows who fired that shot, but the American Revolution began with it and the ensuing musket fire. The Battle of Lexington, as it would later be known, was brief but resulted in the deaths of eight colonists. The British marched on to Concord, facing a much larger group of colonists from all over the area at the North Bridge.
- Concord: Home to the Old North Bridge. At the North Bridge in Concord, approximately 400 militiamen engaged 100 regulars from three companies of the King’s troops at about 11:00 am, resulting in casualties on both sides. The outnumbered regulars fell back from the bridge and rejoined the main body of British forces in Concord. What followed was a tense standoff at the Old North Bridge, where colonial militiamen stood their ground in a show of defiance.
On the bridge, as British soldiers advanced, the patriots fired. The British were forced to retreat, marking a decisive moment in the day’s events. The battle in Concord had been won, but it was more than just a military victory. It symbolized the resolve of the colonists’ willingness to fight for their independence. The British soldiers, unable to secure their objective, began their march back east, but the fight was far from over.
- Minute Man National Park: Minute Man National Historical Park in Lexington, Lincoln, and Concord, Massachusetts, preserves and interprets the sites, structures, and landscapes that became the battlefield during the first armed conflict of the American Revolution on April 19, 1775. Here, British colonists risked their lives and property, defending their ideals of liberty and self-determination. The events of that day have been popularized by succeeding generations as the “shot heard around the world.” Often referred to as the “Battles of Lexington and Concord,” the fighting on April 19, 1775, raged over 16 miles along the Bay Road from Boston to Concord and included some 1,700 British regulars and over 4,000 Colonial militia.
- British Casualties totaled 273; 73 Killed, 174 wounded, and 26 missing.
- Colonial casualties totaled 95; 49 killed, 41 wounded, and five missing.
- Arlington: The village of Menotomy (now Arlington) was located on Concord Road (now Massachusetts Avenue) between Boston and Lexington. With its meeting house, burial ground, taverns, and mill sites, it encouraged settlement by dividing pastures. Returning from encounters at Lexington Green and Concord Bridge, the British troops reached the Foot of the Rocks in Menotomy around 4 pm on April 19. The Battle of Menotomy was the bloodiest in Massachusetts.
Battle Road: A testament to courage, a symbol of resistance, and a reminder that the power to create change lies within us all.
