Photo By Linnea Shirley | The New England District Ranger Color Guard (Matthew Coleman, Nicole Giles, David...... read more read more
On April 19, 1775, a shot was heard around the world that started the Revolutionary War and America’s road to becoming a free nation.
Two hundred and forty-nine years later, on April 19, the town of Concord, Massachusetts, commemorated its role in the war and honored the patriots who gave their lives with its annual reenactment and Patriots’ Day parade.
Col. Justin R. Pabis, PE, New England District Commander, Lt. Col. David MacPhail, Deputy Commander and the New England District Ranger Color Guard represented the District during the three-mile parade.
The New England District has been participating in the Concord parade most years since the organization moved to Concord Park in 1999.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was formed during the Battle of Bunker Hill only a few months after the Revolutionary War began, and only several miles away in Charlestown, Massachusetts.
The parade route passed many historical landmarks until it paused along Monument Street near the North Bridge to view the commemoration of the Concord conflict. The North Bridge ceremony included a wreath-laying at the minuteman statue and the British graves at the obelisk.
The New England District Unit joined the rest of the participants in resuming the parade after the ceremony, ending in the center of Concord. The New England District Color Guard was made up of Matthew Coleman, Nicole Giles, David Grandy and Colin Monkiewicz.
The Revolutionary War began in Lexington, Massachusetts, when 77 colonists assembled on Lexington Green, having been alerted that 700 British soldiers were advancing to arrest colonial leaders and seize any supplies of powder and arms they could find.
The British commanded the colonists to disperse, and as they were doing so, a shot was fired. No one knows which side fired the first shot, but what is known is that the British soldiers fired on the retreating colonists, killing eight.
News of the shooting and the continuing march of the British soldiers toward Concord spread to the countryside. Minutemen from Concord and neighboring communities gathered near the North Bridge to keep an eye on the Redcoats. Fearing that the British were setting fire to the town, the colonists advanced on the British soldiers guarding the North Bridge, and a brief battle occurred in which two colonists and three British were killed. As the British regrouped and marched back to Boston, the colonists followed.
Fighting broke out again and continued throughout the day as the British column retreated along the Battle Road. When the fighting ended at sunset, 49 Americans and 73 British had died.
| Date Taken: | 04.19.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 09.13.2024 11:42 |
| Story ID: | 480799 |
| Location: | CONCORD, MASSACHUSETTS, US |
| Web Views: | 32 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, District leadership, Color Guard participate in historic parade, by AnnMarie Harvie, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
