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The Diary of John Peterson
by Michele W. |
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April 17, 1775,
Dear Diary,
When I woke up I got dressed in my tan pants, white blouse, and tan
vest and I put on my black shoes. I went into Laura’s room to wake her
up, but she was not there. Then I went down into the main
room and Victoria was just finishing making breakfast. After we all sat
down and ate, I said good- bye to my wife and child.
I walked down to my shop and started making the gun I have been working
on for over 12 days. After many hours of working I finished the gun. I
looked out the window and saw lots of people standing outside waiting
for me to open. I thought to myself why would so many people want to
buy guns? Then I realized that they wanted to buy them to protect
themselves from the regulars.
After everyone had left I put away the tools and walked back up to the
house. When I got back up into the house dinner was already on the
table and ready to be eaten. After we all ate, Laura got a wash
and then we all went to
bed.
John Peterson
April 18, 1775
Dear Diary,
When I got up I got dressed. My wife made breakfast for the family and
so we sat down and ate. After we ate I said good-bye to my wife and
child and I walked to the shop and lit the candle that was on top of my
working desk because it was a dark morning. I stared at the
flickering candlelight. I waited for a bit to see if anyone would come
in.
When no one came in, I started polishing off the guns that were
gathering up dust. By the time I finished polishing the guns, there
were two guards waiting outside the door. They bought four muskets.
After everyone was gone I blew out the candle. It was about midnight
when I started walking back up to the house. I heard horses hooves
trampling on the earth in a steady beating sound as they drew closer to
my shop. Then I heard: “The regulars are coming! The regulars are
coming!” I looked out the window and saw Paul Revere on his horse
racing by. As he faded into the distance I came to realize how much
danger I was actually in.
At this very moment in time thousands of soldiers had come into Boston.
I looked out the window and saw people standing outside panicking and
chatting to one another. I went outside and ran near the church and saw
a man hang two lanterns. I just returned home. I cannot wait to see the
Boston Gazette to see what happened.
John Peterson
April 20, 1775
Dear Diary,
Today I got up got dressed then woke up my wife and child. Victoria had
made breakfast. After everyone ate, Victoria washed the dishes.
Then I heard this big crash up in the loft. I ran upstairs and saw the
mirror on the floor broken. Laura said sorry many times. Victoria and I
was just happy she had not fallen down and hurt herself.
It was afternoon when I had decided to go down to the shop and work on
making a new gun. I gave Laura a hug and told her it was Today and I
was
not angry at her. I went down to the shop and grabbed the hammer and
started working. Then a man came in asking if I had read the Boston
Gazette. I had told him no. He put the paper on my working desk and
told me to read it. I read the first few sentences then realized this
is what happened a few days ago when I had saw Paul Revere on a horse
shouting, “The regulars are coming out!”
`
The paper had said that Paul Revere, and William Dawes were captured
then later let go when they heard a gun shot. They released Paul and
William because they knew it would slow down the retreat. After I was
finished reading the Boston Gazette I looked up and the man was gone
and so were the other customers.
I waited awhile to see if anymore people would come to purchase guns. I
waited for what seemed like hours, but no one came in. Then I put my
tools away and walked back up to the house. When I got up to the house
dinner was already prepared. We all sat at the table and ate.
John Peterson
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Historical References:
Gunsmith.Colonial Williamsburg. 3 April, 2006.
<http://www.history.org/almanack/life/trades/tradegun.cfm.
Paul Revere. His Ride & Association with freemasonry. April 25, 06.
<http://www.bessel.org/revere.htm.
Paul Reveres Ride. April 25, 2006. <www.ushistory.org/
Valley Forge/you asked/065.htm>.
Paul Revere. April 27, 2006.
<http://darter.ocp.net/classroom/revolution/revere.htm>
Geddes, Holly. The Gunsmith.
12 April 06.
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Historical Terms
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Loyalist
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Patriot
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Boycott
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Fortnight
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About the Historian
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Michele Whitmore goes to King Middle
School in Portland, ME. She likes animals but loves horses. She
has 1 cat and 1 guinea pig. She is a really good friend.
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