John Parker, captain of the Lexington Company
John Parker had some military experience from the French & Indian War (though not as much as is sometimes said about him). As was traditional in New England militias, though officers held their commissions from the government, the men of the company had actually chosen him to lead them.
“I, John Parker, of lawful Age, and Commander of the Militia in Lexington, do testify and declare, that on the 19th Instant in the Morning, about one of the Clock, being informed that there were a Number of Regular Officers, riding up and down the Road, stopping and insulting People as they passed the Road; and also was informed that a Number of Regular Troops were on their March from Boston in order to take the Province Stores at Concord, ordered our Militia to meet on the Common in said Lexington to consult what to do, and concluded not to be discovered, nor meddle or make with said Regular Troops (if they should approach) unless they should insult or molest us; and, upon their sudden Approach, I immediately ordered our Militia to disperse, and not to fire:—Immediately said Troops made their appearance and rushed furiously, fired upon, and killed eight of our Party without receiving any Provocation therefor from us.”
Source: A Narrative of the Excursion and Ravages of the King’s Troops. Worcester, Mass.: Isaiah Thomas, 1775.
Thirty-four men from the Lexington company
“We Nathaniel Mulliken, Philip Russell, [and 32 other men], All of lawful age, and inhabitants of Lexington, in the County of Middlesex…do testify and declare, that on the nineteenth in the morning, being informed that…a body of regulars were marching from Boston towards Concord…we were alarmed and having met at the place of our company’s parade, were dismissed by our Captain, John Parker, for the present, with orders to be ready to attend at the beat of the drum. We further testify and declare that about five o’clock in the morning, hearing our drum beat, we proceeded towards the parade, and soon found that a large body of troops were marching towards us, some of our company were coming to the parade, and others had reached it, at which time, the company began to disperse, whilst our backs were turned on the troops, we were fired on by them, and a number of our men were instantly killed and wounded, not a gun was fired by any person in our company on the regulars to our knowledge before they fired on us, and continued firing until we had all made our escape.”
Source: A Narrative of the Excursion and Ravages of the King’s Troops. Worcester, Mass.: Isaiah Thomas, 1775.
John Robbins
John Robbins was a Lexington militiaman. He gave a deposition on April 24th, one day before his captain and most of his comrades testified together. His story was therefore not influenced by theirs.
“I, John Robbins, being of lawful Age, do Testifye and say, that on the Nineteenth Instant, the Company under the Command of Captain John Parker, being drawn up (sometime before sun Rise) on the Green or Common, and I being in the front Rank, there suddenly appear'd a Number of the Kings Troops, about a Thousand, as I thought, at the distance of about 60 or 70 yards from us Huzzaing, and on a quick pace towards us, with three Officers in their front on Horse Back, and on full Gallop towards us, the foremost of which cryed, throw down your Arms ye Villains, ye Rebels! upon which said Company Dispersing, the foremost of the three Officers order'd their Men, saying, fire, by God, fire! at which Moment we received a very heavy and close fire from them, at which Instant, being wounded, I fell, and several of our men were shot Dead by one volley. Captain Parker's men I believe had not then fired a Gun. And further the Deponent saith not.”
Source: A Narrative of the Excursion and Ravages of the King’s Troops. Worcester, Mass.: Isaiah Thomas, 1775.
Ebenezer Munroe in 1824
In 1775, Munroe was a 22-year-old yeoman farmer and militia corporal. Fifty years later, he was living in Ashburnham, Massachusetts. A minister from Lexington tracked him down and asked him about the fight on the green.
“Some of our men went into the meeting-house, where the town’s powder was kept, for the purpose of replenishing their stock of ammunition. When the regulars had arrived within eighty or one hundred rods, they, hearing our drum beat, halted, charged their guns, and doubled their ranks, and marched up at quick step. Capt. Parker ordered his men to stand their ground, and not to molest the regulars, unless they meddled with us. The British troops came up directly in our front. The commanding officer advanced within a few rods of us, and exclaimed, ‘Disperse, you damned rebels! you dogs, run!—Rush on my boys!’ and fired his pistol. The fire from their front ranks soon followed. After the first fire, I received a wound in my arm, and then, as I turned to run, I discharged my gun into the main body of the enemy. As I fired, my face being toward them, one ball cut off a part of one of my ear-locks, which was then pinned up. Another ball passed between my arm and my body, and just marked my clothes. The first fire of the British was regular; after that, they fired promiscuously. . . . When I fired, I perfectly well recollect of taking aim at the regulars. The smoke, however, prevented my being able to see many of them. . . . When the British came up in front of the meeting-house, Joshua Simonds was in the upper gallery, an open cask of powder standing near him, and he afterward told me, that he cocked his gun and placed the muzzle of it close to the cask of powder, and determined to ‘touch it off,’ in case the troops had come into the gallery.”
Source: Elias Phinney, History of the Battle at Lexington. Boston: Phelps & Farnham, 1825.
Lt. William Sutherland, 39th Regiment
Sutherland came to Lexington green on horseback, believing that just outside of town a man had shot at him.
“When we came up to the main body which appeared to me to Exceed 400 in & about the Village who were drawn up in a plain opposite to the Church, several Officers Called out throw down your Arms & you shall come to no harm, or words to that Effect, which they refusing to do, instantaneously the Gentlemen who were on horseback rode in amongst them of which I was one, at which instant I heard Major Pitcairns voice Call out Soldiers dont fire, keep your Ranks, form & surround them, instantly some of the Villains who got over the hedge fired at us which our men for the first time returned, which sett my horse a going who Galloped with me down a road to the right above 600 yards among the middle of them before I turned him & in returning a vast number who were in a Wood at the right of the Grenadiers fired at me, but the distance was so great that I only heard the Whistling of the Balls, but saw a great number of people in the Wood, in consequence of their discovering themselves by firing. . . . Our men now kept up the fire and on my coming up Colonel Smith turned to me, asked me, do you know where a Drum is, which I found, who immediatly beat to Arms, when the Men ceased firing, during this time there was 3 Shot fired at Col. Smith from the Gavel Garrett Window of a house within 50 yards of us, & it was from the end of that house the first 3 Shot were fired upon us. Col. Smith and Major Pitcairn regretted in my hearing the too great Warmth of the Soldiers in not attending to their Officers & keeping their ranks & in recommending a more steady Conduct to them for the future.”
Source: Allen French, General Gage’s Informers: New Material Upon Lexington and Concord, Benjamin Thompson as Loyalist and the Treachery of Benjamin Church, Jr. Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan Press, 1932.
Lt. John Barker, 4th Regiment
”At 2 o’clock we began our march by wading through a very long ford up to the middles; after going a few miles we took three or four people who were going off to give intelligence; about five miles on this side of a town called Lexington, which lay in our road, we heard there were some hundreds of people collected together intending to oppose us and stop our going on; at 5 o’clock we arrived there, and saw a number of people, I believe between 200 and 300, formed in a common in the middle of town; we still continued advancing, keeping prepared against an attack through without intending to attack them; but on our coming near them they fired on us two shots, upon which our men without any orders, rushed upon them, fired and put them to flight; several of them were killed, we could not tell how many, because they were behind walls and into the woods. We had a man of the 10th light Infantry wounded, nobody else was hurt. We then formed on the Common, but with some difficulty, the men were so wild they could hear no orders; we waited a considerable time there, and at length proceeded our way to Concord.”
Source: The British in Boston: Being the Diary of Lieutenant John Barker of the King’s Own Regiment from November 15, 1774 to May 31, 1776. Notes by Elizabeth Ellery Dana. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1924.
Lt Edward Thoroton Gould, 4th Regiment
Lt. Gould was captured on his way back to Boston after being wounded at the North Bridge in Concord. The Massachusetts Provincial Congress report included a deposition from him, taken at Medford on 25 April 1775, about what happened in Lexington.
“I, Edward Thornton Gould, of his Majesty's own Regiment of Foot, being of lawful Age, do testify and declare, that on the Evening of the 18th. Instant, under the Orders of General Gage, I embarked with the Light infantry and Grenadiers of the Line, commanded by Colonel Smith, and landed on the Marshes of Cambridge, from whence we proceeded to Lexington; On our arrival at that place, we saw a Body of provincial Troops armed, to the Number of about sixty or seventy Men; on our Approach, they dispersed, and soon after firing began, but which party fired first, I cannot exactly say, as our Troops rush'd on shouting, and huzzaing, previous to the firing, which was continued by our Troops, so long as any of the provincials were to be seen. From thence we marched to Concord. . . . I myself was wounded at the Attack of the Bridge, and am now treated with the greatest Humanity, and taken all possible Care of by the provincials at Medford.”
Source: A Narrative of the Excursion and Ravages of the King’s Troops. Worcester, Mass.: Isaiah Thomas, 1775.
Report on the Battles of Lexington and Concord
Major John Pitcairn
April 26, 1775
Boston Camp,
26 th April, 1775
To: General Thomas Gage
26 th April, 1775
To: General Thomas Gage
Sir,
As you are anxious to know the particulars that happened near and at Lexington in the 19 th Inst agreeable to your desire, I will in as concise a manner as possible state the facts, for my time at present is so much employed, as to prevent a more particular narrative of the occurrences of that day.
Six companies of Light Infantry were detached by Lt Colo Smith to take possession of two bridges on the other side of Concord, near three in the Morning, when we were advanced within about two miles of Lexington, intelligence was received that about 500 men in arms were assembled, determined to oppose the Kings troops, and retard them in their march. On this intelligence, I mounted my horse, and galloped up to the six Light Companies. When I arrived at the head of the advance Company, two officers came and informed me, that a man of the rebels advanced from those that were assembled, had presented his musket and attempted to shoot them, but the piece flashed in the pan. On this I gave directions to the troops to move forward, but on no account to fire, or even attempt it without orders; when I arrived at the end of the Village, I observed drawn up upon a Green near 200 rebels; when I came within about 100 yards of them, they began to file off towards some stone walls on our right flank. The Light Infantry, observing this, ran after them. I instantly called to the soldiers not to fire, but surround and disarm them, and after several repetitions of those positive orders to the men, not to fire, etc. some of the rebels who had jumped over the wall fired four or five shots at the soldiers, which wounded a man of the Tenth and my horse was wounded in two places, from some quarter or other, and at the same time several shots were fired from a meeting house on our left. Upon this, without any order or regularity, the Light Infantry began a scattered fire, and continued in that situation for some little time, contrary to the repeated orders both of me and the officers that were present. It will be needless to mention what happened after, as I suppose Colo Smith hath given a particular account of it..
I am, Sir, Your Most Obedt
Humble Servant
John Pitcairn
Humble Servant
John Pitcairn
