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Patriots Day |
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On April 19, 1775, the American Revolutionary War began with the battles at Lexington and Concord between British "redcoats" and colonial Minutemen. It's now Patriots Day. |
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Patriots Day is commemorated each year in Massachusetts and Maine with dramatic battle re-enactments, parades and ceremonies. Here's a list of events and locations. Among the better-known commemorative events on Patriots Day (April 19th) is the Boston Marathon, which has been run now for over a century. Patriots Day is a public holiday in Massachusetts and Maine, celebrated on the Monday nearest that date. All Massachusetts state, county and town government offices and many local businesses close, though federal government offices, post offices, and offices of large interstate and international companies remain open. The re-enactment of the battle on Lexington Green starts at dawn (6 am), but crowds of spectators begin to gather several hours before. If you don't get there at least two hours early, you won't be able to find any good vantage point for the "battle." To get the best views, you must stake out your spot three, four or even five hours before. (In other words, you spend the night there.) Before 6 am you will hear the redcoats marching along Battle Road as they approach Lexington Green. Patriots Day events in nearby Concord are a bit nicer to your sleep-time. A mid-morning parade with lots of fife-and-drum bands and groups of Minutemen from surrounding towns is followed by ceremonies at Old North Bridge and the repeated firing of two brass cannons. Several church halls open to provide pancake breakfasts to the multitude.
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Above, "redcoats"
line up on Lexington
Green ready to do battle
with Minutemen.
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