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| Gunsmith's Letters Reveal Secrets
of Revere's Ride by Robert F. |
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April 1, 1775
Dear Thomas,
Today on this nice morning I woke up to a sound of
very loud knocking on my front door. I answered it and it was Paul
Revere. Paul is one of my best customers and he is known in
Boston as a man who supports the Sons of Liberty. He told me I
should start working on the guns for the pile. I went to my shop. I
have been working making muskets, ammunition and cannon balls because
it seems that there might be a war. A gun usually will cost about two
pounds but I may have to start charging more because I may need to
employ more people to help. My shop, which is next to my house,
has been very busy. Many lads have been helping me. My three
apprentices who I teach all are helpful to me. The longest
apprentice who has worked with me named John watches over the two other
apprentices as they make and repair fire arms, axes and other daily
objects. This allows me to assemble fire arms for many of the patriotic
men in Boston.
Let me tell thee that since the destruction of the
tea things have not been well in Boston. King George sent troops back
to our city and closed the port. Life has been harsh. We are worried
that the soldiers will come and destroy our hard work and kill us
so we have been working in secret. We hurried and finished piling all
of the munitions and gunpowder in a wagon that is headed to Concord.
Let me tell thee brother since Samuel Adams who is
the brains of the movement against the king and all of the unfair
taxes, has fled Boston things have be very unsettled. Sam left Boston
because he feared arrest by the king’s officials. Mr. Revere also
told me this morning that he has seen a soldier’s landing craft being
taken out of the water for repairs and suspects that something is
about to happen. I must keep my eyes and ears open. I will let you know
what happens in a few days. I hope things are well with you in
Philadelphia.
All my best,
James William's
April 5, 1775
Dear Thomas,
I woke up this morning and started to make
breakfast and I noticed I did not have food so I went out to get food.
I overheard people saying that the lobsterbacks in Boston heard about
the ammunitions. I could not believe that they heard about our secret
plans and I knew I should go tell Paul Revere about the lobsterbacks
marching to Concord. He invited me into his house for some cider and I
told him abut the soldiers going to Concord, so we made plans and he is
going to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock.
Thank goodness I have been working on the ammunition
because I feel that the war is going to happen soon. This makes
me feel scared because the British have a lot of power. I am
afraid that the British will take everyone and kill them. I am
also worried about you, my brother. I hope you take good care of
yourself I heard of a few people near here that died of Smallpox,
things like that always scare me. I have been writing to you and I
don’t want you to get in trouble. I will write to you later.
All the best,
James William's
April 10, 1775
Dear Thomas,
Paul Revere rode off to North Church and told
someone there to hang one lantern if they go by land, two if they go by
sea. Later that night I rode to Concord and I did not see Paul Revere
there so I asked fellow patriot John Hancock and he said that he was in
Lexington. So I rode to Lexington and there was no sign of
Paul. I was worried that I hadn’t seen him around there, so I
waited through the night at a tavern. I went to Paul’s house in the
morning and I found him. I asked him what happened and he told me
that he rode to Concord and a Lobsterback captured him and kept him
overnight. Paul Revere said that there might be a war because
things are getting tense. I am mad at the British because they
haven’t asked us if we wanted to be taxed, and they have put taxes on
lead, paint and tea, and closed our ports. They have also sent
soldiers to Boston, and now it seems they want to start a war.
This all makes me very nervous because I think everyone will get
hurt. I think the future will be bad if the British rule still,
so this means that maybe we do have to go to war. I’ll bid
you ado for now.
All my best,
James William's |
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Historical References:
Collier, Christopher and Collier, James Lincoln. The American Revolution
1763-1783, Benchmark Books, 1998.
Hakim, Joy. From Colonies to
Country Oxford University Press : 1993.
Penner, Lucille Recht. Liberty!
How the Revolutionary War Began
Landmark Books Random House, New York: 1998.
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