CASE FILE

On April 19, 1775 ten years of political protest escalated as British soldiers clashed with minute men at Lexington and Concord. The events that occurred would have a profound impact on the people of Massachusetts and soon grew into an American war for independence and selfgovernment.

Lexington and Concord

CLASSIFIED

Detective Log

Who authored When was What type of Who was the Who was the aggressor in audience for the the incident according to the document? the document document? document? Why was authored? the document? it created?

Document A Document B

See Handout

Document A
Order Given to Lt. Colonel Francis Smith from Thomas Gage Primary Source Lieut. Colonel Smith, 10th Regiment Foot
Vocabulary Intelligence: information about an opponents plans Provision: food and other necessary supplies

Artillery: cannons and similar large weapons

Small arms: hand-held weapons, often handguns, swords, or knives Avowed: specific or stated Grenadier: a type of soldier in the British army Plunder: take personal goods by force from people who have been conquered Draught: a map Trunion: a part of a cannon that helps the barrel be aimed to the correct elevation Chaises: two-wheeled carriages

Document B

First-Hand Accounts of the Battle Lt. John Barker, British Soldier, 4th Regiment Diary Account on the beginning of the march to Lexington

Document C

Official Statement of John Robbins, Lexington Militia, April 24, 1775, on Lexington Green

Vocabulary Instant: a particular point in time, in this case on the nineteenth of April, 1775. Front rank: front row Huzzaing: cheering and yelling loudly Volley: one round of firing

Document D

Narrative of Ensign Jeremy Lister of His Majestys 10th Regiment of Foot, on the Fighting in Lexington

Vocabulary Flank: fleshy section between the last rib and hip Salute: firing of guns

Document E

Statement of James Barrett, Colonel of Concord Militia, on the Battle at North Bridge

Document F

Alice Stearns Abbott, Citizen of Bedford, Massachusetts, on the Beginning of Fighting

This hand-colored line engraving on copper is one of four by Amos Doolittle at the Albany Institute. They have immense historic value because they show contemporary views of the battles at Lexington and Concord. Doolittle, a member of the New Haven Company of Guards, visited the sites just after the battles and interviewed some of the participants, then made the engravings. This plate shows Lt. Col. Smith and his second in command surveying the terrain from the Concord graveyard. The 700 or so British troops they commanded are lined up through the center of town andat the same timethey are shown throwing American military stores into the millpond in the background. The Battle of Concord proved pivotal for the upcoming War of Independence.

Document G

Questions to Consider
What questions did you ask while evaluating these sources? On what points do the accounts agree? On what points do the accounts differ? Which of these sources aligns most closely with what you already knew about the Battle of Lexington and Concord? How so? Which of these sources is most reliable in determining what actually happened at the Lexington and Concord? Why do you think so? Describe the difficulties in developing an accurate account of historical events like the Battle of Lexington and Concord?

If you were asked to write your own historical account of the events that occurred during the Battle of Lexington and Concord, how would you go about doing so?