Overview
Dracut, Massachusetts, was one of the towns that mobilized its militia forces in response to the Lexington Alarm. However, the men did not engage the British that day, and most of them returned to their homes. Later, they joined the Siege of Boston and fought in the Battle of Bunker Hill.
This account of the Dracut Militia and its response to the Lexington Alarm is taken from History of Dracut, Massachusetts, written by Silas Roger Coburn and published in 1922. It includes the town’s response to key events during the American Revolution, including the Stamp Act and Intolerable Acts. It also mentions the history of Train Bands, which were instituted in the colonies as Militia and Minuteman Companies, and an interesting anecdote about the town’s purchase of bayonets.
Please note that we have made minor text corrections and edits but have not changed the author’s meaning or intent. These changes have been made to help readers, particularly younger ones, understand the text. We have also added spacing and section headings to help readers scan the text and added notes for context.
Essential Facts
- Location: Dracut is about 20 miles slightly northwest of Lexington, Massachusetts.
- Commanding Officers: Captain Stephen Russell (Militia), Captain Peter Coburn (Minutemen).
- Entered the Battle: The Dracut Militia and Minutemen did not engage the British during the battles.
- Lexington Alarm: Dracut learned of the Alarm around 2:00 a.m. when Captain John Trull, who was in Tewskbury, fired his alarm gun.
History
The peace that followed the signing of the treaty between England and France was of brief duration. England’s attitude towards the colonies was of such a nature that it caused great dissatisfaction. The Governors of the colonies appointed by the crown were little in sympathy with the American people and often disposed to be arrogant and oppressive.
The war was commenced to maintain the rights of the people of America and not with any expectation of withdrawal from the Mother Country. Those men who fell at Lexington and Bunker Hill never suspected that those conflicts would lead to the establishment of a republic. However, as the war was waged from year to year, it became evident that there could be no peace unless the colonies received their freedom.
The causes of the war are well known and need not be repeated here, but the part which Dracut took was creditable to the town. A study of statistics will reveal the fact that no town or city in the thirteen colonies sent to the war a greater number of men to the proportion of its inhabitants than Dracut. The total number of soldiers from this town, so far as known, was 439; the number of inhabitants, including women and children, was about 1,100.
- AHC Note — Based on these numbers, 39% of the inhabitants of Dracut served in the war.
Many of these had served in the Colonial Wars, and the peculiar nature of Indian fighting had made them self-reliant, courageous, and resourceful. But the need for military organization and military training was realized, and Dracut men were taught the rules and regulations that relate to military life. They were proficient in marksmanship, for their safety depended on their skill in the use of the musket to protect their families from the assaults of the Indians and their flocks from depredation by wild animals, but, in addition, military discipline was needed.
Mr. F.W. Coburn in his Battle of April 19, 1775, referring to this need of organization, says: “If he (Lieut. Col. Francis Smith) entertained any idea of surrendering, though I have no evidence that he did, he must have realized the hopelessness of that, for no one seemed to be commanding the multitude before him, beside him, and behind him. They constituted a large circle of individuals, but made no attempt to stay his march or guide it in any way. They just followed along, seemingly intent only on hunting down the King’s soldiers. Had some master mind been in charge of the patriot army. Smith’s entire force could easily have been taken prisoners. But this was the first day of the war and was only a contest between soldiers and citizens.”
Had this occurred later, when Washington had assumed command, the result of the battle would have been more disastrous to the British.
Train Bands, Militia, and Minutemen
During the period immediately preceding the Revolution, train bands were organized, which added greatly to the efficiency of the American soldiers, but as the exercises were to a great extent marching and countermarching with sham battles on the training field, the men had much to learn when real fighting commenced. The train bands were known in England a century before the Revolution, having been introduced by King James I.
“John Gilpin was a citizen
Of credit and renown
A train hand captain eke was he
Of famous London town.”
The commencement of the war brought into service the successors of the train bands, viz., the militia and minute men. The definition of the term “militia” is given…as “The civilian military force of the nation consisting of citizens trained to arms, and subject to be called forth to enable the executive to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrection and repel invasion. They are not a standing army, in the sense of being continually under arms, but are subject to the call of the President in the event of war. The organization is generally spoken of as The National Guard.”
The Minute Men were more independent bodies of soldiers, they were expected to be ready at a minute’s notice, which gave them their name, and as signals were agreed upon by the discharge of muskets at night, the hanging of lanterns in belfries:
“One if by land and two if by sea”
…and the swift riding of horsemen to alarm the members, the name, Minute Men, was rightly applied to them. The responses were immediate — farm work was abandoned, and saw and gristmills were left in charge of those who were not able to endure the hardships of war. Haste was urgent, the liberties of the people were in danger, and the Minute Man must do his duty:
“They left the ploughshare in the mold
The flocks and herds without a fold
The sickle in the unshorn grain
The corn half garnered on the plain.”
The battles that were fought during the first years of the Revolution were those in which only Minute Men and militia were engaged, and until its close, the Federal Government exercised but little power.
“Valley Forge was the pivotal, bloodless battle of the Revolution, and it marked the disappearance of the state militia levy and the birth of the American army.” — Gen. Philip Reade U.S.A.
“These Minute Men were trained often, the towne paying the expense, when the company after its field exercises would sometimes repair to the meeting house to hear a patriotic sermon, or partake of an entertainment at the Town House where zealous ‘Sons of Liberty’ would exhort them to prepare to fight bravely for God and their country.”
“Lord Percy said at table he never saw anything equal to the intrepedity of the Minute Men. They were of all classes, and it was held as a marked distinction to be chosen as an officer in a company.”
“The fife, the drum and the trumpet were the only instruments then used in the Continental Army. The tunes usually played were ‘Yankee Doodle’ and ‘The Road to Boston.’ The tune of ‘Chester’ by William Billings was sometimes heard in camp, and before the close of the war, several new marches were introduced. Military bands were not formed in this country until about the commencement of the last century. They were in some instances taught by the Hessians who settled here after the war was over.”
Taxation Without Representation
At the period when restrictions of commerce, the Stamp Act, the tax on tea, and other oppressive acts were being put forth by the English Government, it is with pleasure that we find a few members of Parliament who recognized the injustice of these acts and were outspoken in their condemnation.
In a speech, Walpole said, “I will leave the taxation of America to some of my successors who have more courage than I have.” Mr. Pitt also said, “I will never burn my fingers with an American Stamp Sct.”
The result of all this agitation and the hardships of the Seven Years’ War resulted in the birth of a nation that eventually was to take its place among the foremost nations of the world. Although the war was not formally commenced until after the battle at Lexington on April 19, 1775, there were indications of trouble that warranted a preparation for the event.
- AHC Note — Taxation Without Representation refers to the concept that colonists did not have a voice in tax policies that were enacted by Parliament.
Boston Massacre
As early as 1770, the citizens of Boston, irritated beyond endurance by the conduct of the British troops, met a company of soldiers in the streets of Boston and, while opposing their advance, received a discharge from the muskets which killed several of the citizens. This is known as the Boston Massacre. In this affray, Dracut had no part, but the news was received by the townspeople, and the spirit of liberty was aroused.
Intolerable Acts
A warrant was issued by the town to call a town meeting on the 12th day of January, 1775: “Then and there to see if the inhabitants will vote to come into any method for raising any support for the poor of the Town of Charlestown and Boston now under oppressed circumstances, in struggling for the liberties of their country.”
The records of the disposition of the articles in a warrant are often lacking, but we learn from a record made at a later date that assistance was rendered. “Charlestown Feb. 15, 1775, Received from the town of Dracut by the hand of Parker Varnum forty five and a half bushels of rye and indian meal, also twenty eight pounds, eighteen shillings old tenor in cash for the relief of the poor sufferers by the cruel Boston Port Bill, for which we shall account to the town of Boston.”
- Author Note — Boston was not incorporated as a city until after the Revolution. The Boston Port Bill was one of the Intolerable Acts enacted by Parliament to punish Boston and Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party.
Committee of Correspondence and Safety
At this same meeting, Peter Coburn Sr. was chosen to represent the town at a meeting of the Provincial Congress to be held February 1, 1775, at Cambridge. The people realized the need for cooperation between Colonies, and to accomplish this, a committee of the leading men who were known to be earnest in the cause of liberty was appointed. This committee was called the Committee of Correspondence and Safety. The men from Dracut chosen to serve on this committee were: Thomas Hovey, Amos Bradley, Isaac Fox, William Hildreth, and Dr. Joseph Hunt.
Dracut Militia Companies, Muskets, and Bayonets
As early as 1770, two volunteer companies were raised in Dracut. One of these was composed of 70 men, who elected Joseph B. Varnum for Captain.
In those days, no house was completely equipped, which did not include a musket or “Queens arm,” as it was called, with powder, bullets, and flints. So when the bells were rung for an alarm or a signal gun fired by a farmer, each man seized his musket and ran to meet his comrades at the rallying place which had been appointed.
Deposited in the Dracut museum is an old assessment and rate book in which is an entry relating to this time. It is entitled, “County and Baggonate rate East part 1774.” The book is a curiosity as the cover is made of a piece of oak board about the thickness of cigar box board and covered with brown paper. The number to be assessed is 120, and in addition to the County rates, the assessments are to pay for the “purchase of a number of Baggonates for the towns use.” This is signed by Ephraim Coburn, Peter Coburn, and Ephraim Curtis, the selectmen and assessors. They were not at first provided with baggonates — or bayonets — as now called, and at Lexington and Bunker Hill, they were not needed, but later, the bayonet charge by the Provincials was so fierce and determined that the trained soldiers of England were forced to retire before them.
The courage of the American soldiers was underestimated. It was said by the British officers that “any two regiments ought to be decimated if they do not beat in the field the whole force of the Massachusetts Province; for though they are numerous they are but a mob without order or discipline and very awkward at handling arms.”
Dracut Minutemen
In December 1774, the Provincial Congress decided to enlist 12,000 men to act as Minute Men. The train band was reorganized with Stephen Russell, Captain; Ephraim Coburn, Lieutenant; and Abraham Coburn, Ensign. Joseph Bradley Varnum, a young man of 23 years of age, was made military instructor. He was well-fitted for the duties, having made a careful study of the tactics that were in use at the time. His commission as Captain was dated May 31, 1776.
The Provincial Congress was not clothed with any authority. Although the Colonies sent representatives, they could only consult in relation to ways and means and to recommend measures. These measures would be received by the towns, but it was optional with them whether they accepted or rejected them.
In March 1775, the town voted “That we comply with the resolves of the Provincial Congress so far as is in our power. Also “to have Baggonates for a Company of minit men…To draw out one quarter part of the soldiers as Minute men, as recommended by the Provincial Congress.”
The town also voted “To give the Minute Men one shilling for exercising one half day each week for ten weeks to come after they are equipped unless the last act of Parliament — Boston Port Bill — shall be repealed.” and also voted “That if any of the Minute Men refuse to go when called for that they shall not receive their wages for service.”
Preparations for War
Thus, the town was gradually preparing for the storm which burst upon them and which the wiser ones could foresee. The next step was the enlistment of men and the formation of companies. Officers were elected, and the men instructed in the military exercises of the time.
Arrangements were made amongst the members of these companies by which the discharge of a musket in the night would summon each man at once to the training field.
One of these fields was located near Hovey Square, westerly of the Henry Richardson house, and is now crossed by Henry Street. In 1799, the town built a powder house near the spot, and in recent years, it was used by Mr. Richardson for a well house.
The Midnight Riders
When, on April 18, 1775, the King’s troops marched out of Boston on their expedition to destroy the stores of ammunition at Concord and Lexington, their plans had been so secretly matured that the surrounding towns were taken by surprise. The ride of Paul Revere to notify the townspeople has been recorded in history and verse.
“It was twelve by the village clock
When he crossed the bridge into Medford town…
It was one by the village clock
When he rode into Lexington…
It was two by the village clock
When he came to the bridge in Concord town…”
Lexington Alarm
Frank W. Coburn in his Battle of April 19, 1775, records that: “In Dracut, twenty five miles from Boston, the alarm was given soon after two-oclock by the firing of a gun by Captain Trull across the Merrimack river in Tewksbury, a signal previously agreed upon, which aroused Captain Joseph Bradley Varnum. Two companies marched immediately, one under Captain Peter Coburn and the other under Captain Stephen Russell.”
In volume XIII, “Lexington Alarms,” we find the “Muster Roll of the Company of Militia under command of Captain Stephen Russell of Dracut in Col. Greenes Regt, that marched on ye 19th of April A. D. 1775 against ye manisterial troops.”
Officers and Musicians
- Stephen Russell, Captain
- Ephraim Coburn 1st Lieutenant
- Abraham Coburn 2d Lieutenant
- Matthew Parker, Sergeant
- Benjamin French, Sergeant
- Timothy Barker, Sergeant
Enlisted Men
- Reuben Sawyer
- David Jones
- Samuel Brown
- Moses Goodhue
- John Austin
- Josepsh Hebbard
- Thomas Lindsay
- Jonathan Crosby Jr.
- Obadiah Richardson
- Zachariah Goodhue Jr.
- William Hildreth
- Robert Nicklas
- Caleb Austin
- Ezra Coburn
- Samuel Piper
- Ephraim Wright
- Eliphalet Fox
- Caleb Sawyer
- David Austin
- William Famum
- Hincher Parker
- John Harvey
- James Mansur
- William Lyndsey
- William Coburn
- Francis Sawyer
- Joshua Pilsbery
- James Harvey
- William Taylor
- David Trull
- Thomas Taylor
- David Jones Jr.
- Ephraim Hall
- Ephraim Parker
- Ezekiel Cheever
- Timothy Frye
- John Wood
- Stephen Wood
- John Gilchrest
- Job Coburn
- William Clough
- Nehemiahh Flint
- Hugh Jones
- Jesse Adams
- George Burns
- Kindall Parker
- James Davis
- Mitchell Calley
- James Sprague
- Moses Davis
- Green Parker
- David Blood
- Joseph B. Vamum
- Abijah Wood
- Jacob Coburn
- Thomas Varnum
- James Reed
- Jonathan Coburn
- Jonathan Taylor
- William Wood
- Jonas Richardson
- Bartholemew Massey
- David Fox
- Uriah Coburn
- David Adams
- John Bowers
- John Taylor
- William Harvey
- John Hancock
- Daniel Clough
- Solomon Jones
- Moses Barker
- David Clement
- David Lyndsay
- Timothy Davis
- John Barron
- John Thissell
- John Roper
- Thomas Wright
- Timothy Brown Jr.
- Simon Fox
“Mdx S.S Dec 18, 1775 The above & within named Capt. Stephen Russell appeared & made solemn oath that this roll by him subscribed is just and true according to the best of his understanding & that the carefullest examination had been made by him in his power relating thereto. Sworn before me — John Varnum, Just. Peace.”
The total number of names on the roll is 87, and the time of service is two to seven days.
Roll of Captain Peter Coburn’s Company of Minute Men who marched to Lexington:
Officers and Musicians
- Peter Coburn, Captain
- Josiah Foster, Lieutenant
- Ebenezer Varnum, Lieutenant
- Miles Flint, Sergeant
- Isaac Bradley, Sergeant
- Parker Varnum, Sergeant
- Drummer Wiliam Webster, Drummer
Privates
- Josiah Hildreth
- Samuel Barron
- John Bowers Jr
- Edward Wyman
- William Hildrick
- Leonard Coburn
- Hezekiah Coburn
- Bradley Varnum
- Peter Hazleton
- Jonathan Parkhurst
- Isaac Merrill
- Jonathan Hills
- Samuel Coburn
- Henchman Richardson
- Zebulon Jones
- Micah Hildreth
- James Varnum
- James Hunt
- Phineas Coburn
- Jona. Hamblet
- John Varnum
- Benja. Barron
- Jonas Varnum
- John Bradley
- Jonas Whiting
- Josiah Fox
- Abijah Fox
- Solomon Wood
- Jona. Richardson
- Abijah Hill
- Benjamin Crosby
- Jonathan Jones
Total number on the roll: 39.
These names appear as spelled on the original rolls, so causing some peculiar spelling, thus William Hildreth’s name is spelled “Hildrick,” which was a not unusual way of pronouncing the name in later years.
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
So perfect was the organization and so well understood the system of signals that not only the towns nearby but those more remote were hurrying forward their Minute Men by daylight.
Many of them were too late to participate in the first conflict but assisted in the demoralization that took place during the retreat of the English soldiers to Boston. “Whenever it comes to blows, he that can run the fastest will think himself the best off.” This was said by one of the British officers before the battle, referring to the Provincials, and the words were literally true on this memorable 19th of April when applied to the British soldiery.
In an address delivered by Dr. M.G. Parker at Dracut Center, he said: “The British in their report of this battle complained of the Americans to the King calling them murderers because they took aim in battle; they did take aim and they hit the mark, not only at Lexington and Concord, but when they aimed at old England as well.”
Until a later period, there was no army organization and no authorized call for the Minute Men. Each company was independent, and each man depended on his captain for orders.
At the battle on April 19th, Major John Buttrick assumed command, not by appointment but by virtue of his rank being higher than that of the other officers.
After the affray at Lexington, the British hurried to Concord. They were met by Colonel James Barrett, who, as ranking officer, ordered Major John Buttrick to advance at the head of the militia and Minute Men.
As the British retreated through Lexington, they encountered more of the minute men, but the Dracut companies under Captains Peter Coburn and Stephen Russell were too late to engage in the fight and continued their march to Cambridge.
Dracut Men at Bunker Hill
After the affray at Lexington and Concord, the men engaged in it, being enlisted for no particular term of service, returned to their homes. But they were well aware that the British commander at Boston would soon take measures to quell the incipient rebellion, and they at once prepared to resist.
In a list of Revolutionary soldiers kept in a private journal and discovered many years after the war in a secret compartment of a desk, there are names of men who served in the war. This was probably kept by Ephraim Coburn, whose name appears as First Lieutenant in Captain Russell’s company and is now in possession of his lineal descendant, Clarence G. Coburn. The whole list is given, although some names have been recorded in the two preceding lists.
“The Lists of the men that have been in the American Service Since the Battle at Lexington” and “Those that were Engaged at Cambridge Eight Months.”
- Jonas Whiting
- Samuel Whiting
- John Fox
- Moses Clement
- Nehemiah Jacquest
- Capt Peter Coburn
- Lieut Josiah Foster
- Lieut Ebenezer Varnum
- Ser. Micah Hildreth
- Ser. Phineas Coburn
- Josiah Fox
- Moses Barker
- Elijah Hildreth
- David Clough
- Major Joseph Varnum
- James Varnum, Sergeant
- William Harvey, Sergeant
- John Hancock, Corporal
- John Taylor, Corporal
- Jesse Fox, Corporal
- John Barron, Corporal
- Jonas Varnum
- Josua Varnum
- Seth Ditson
- Jonathan Jones
- Benjamin Barron
- Jonathan Richardson
- Amos Sawyer
- Abijah Hills
- Solomon Jones
- Abijah Fox
The company encamped at Cambridge was the one that participated in the battle at Bunker Hill. The complete roll of the company is on file and is entitled “Minute Roll of Capt. Peter Coburn’s Company in Cololen Bridge’s Regiment at Battle of Bunker Hill June 17 1775 and in the siege of the British Army in Boston in the Autumn of 1775.” The additional names besides those at Cambridge were as follows:
- Moses Richardson
- John Varnum (Methuen)
- Henry Barron
- John Bradley
- Nathaniel Kittredge
- Samuel Jenness
- Solomon Wood
- Timothy Patch
- Gardner Gould
- William Varnum
- Timothy Davis
- Daniel Clough (Methuen)
- William Parker
- Jonathan Hamblett
- William Emerson
- David Lindsay
- Tobias Briggs
- John Thissell
- Peter Coburn Jr.
- Thomas Right
- John Roper
- Thomas Gardner
- Zebdiel Fitch
- Joseph Tuttel
- Elijah Tuttel
- Benjamin Crosby
- John Hoit
Total number of members in Company 58.
Peter Coburn, Jr.
Peter Coburn, Jr., was the youngest member of the Company, being only 10 years old. His presence was due to the fact that after his father’s company had marched, he ran away from home and joined them while on the road to Cambridge.
Bunker Hill Memorial
The names of the Dracut men who lost their lives at Bunker Hill are: Joseph Hibbard, a member of Captain John Davis’s Methuen Company; John Thissell and Benjamin Crosby of Captain Peter Coburn’s Company.
Bronze tablets have been erected at Charlestown on which are placed the names of those who fell at Bunker Hill.
- Joseph Hibbard is erroneously credited to Captain Sawyer’s Company as he, as above stated, was a member of Captain Davis’s. Joseph Hibbard was the son of Joseph, who, in 1787, owned real estate in Dracut.
- John Thessill’s name appears on the tablet as a member of Captain Coburn’s, but through some oversight, the name of Benjamin Crosby is omitted from them. John Thessill, as the name is spelled, was the son of Richard and Mary Thissell and uncle of Nathan, Daniel, and Joshua Thissell and was born June 20, 1755.
- Benjamin Crosby was the son of Jonathan and Rebecca (Coburn) Crosby, born August 12, 1754, and was a brother of the great-grandfather of the late Frank L. Crosby.
Coat Rolls
We are not dependent on the muster rolls for information, for there was another class of documents to which reference may be made, called the Coat Rolls.
In the records of the Journal of the Provincial Congress, the following appears: “Resolved that thirteen thousand coats be provided, as soon as may be, and one thereof given to each non commissioned officer and soldier in the Massachusetts forces, agreeably to the resolve of Congress on the 23d day of April last.”
A schedule was prepared, and orders were sent to the different towns to furnish them. They were allowed four shillings each for making and five shillings and four pence for cloth, seven-eighths of a yard wide, and as far as possible, the soldiers from each town were provided with the coats made in that town.
This was a good policy, as the townspeople would have an additional incentive to perform their work well. The family of the member of a company who had lost his life could demand the coat to which they were as much entitled as they were to his pay. The orders for the return of these coats and pay are recorded.
“Methuen February 2, 1776. To the Committee of Supplies this may certify that Joseph Hibbard the son of Joseph of Dracutt enlisted into my Company in Col. James Fryes Regiment and served from the 19th of April till the Battle of Bunker Hill, and was then wounded of which wound he died, and was entitled to a Coat which he has not received. — John Davis, Captain”
“Dracutt November 14, 1775 We the subscribers do certify that Mr. Richard Thissell is the sole right and proprietor of his son John Thissell’s wages that was killed at Bunker Hill fight in June last signed by two selectmen of Dracut.”
Peter Coburn’s Account of the Battle of Bunker Hill
Captain Coburn’s company was engaged in the battle, occupying a prominent position, and it is remarkable that only these three lost their lives. The clothes worn by Captain Coburn were pierced by bullets in many places, but he escaped injury. After several repulses and with great loss, the British at length reached the hastily prepared breastworks, and an officer called out, as the Americans retreated, “Now, my boys, we have you.” As he made this statement, a stone thrown by Captain Coburn knocked him senseless. A letter written by Captain Peter Coburn soon after the battle has been preserved, and its contents will be read with interest:
“Camp Cambridge June 17, 1775
The regiments were ordered from Cambridge to Charlestown and they arrived there about eleven o’clock at night, and then and there began a breastwork, and pursued until about sunrise the next morning.
About sunrise the troops fired on us from the ships as they lay in the ferry way, and killed one Pollard that lived in Billerica, and they continued their fire at times, all the forenoon, and we finished our breastwork about twelve o’clock, at about which time they began to land nigh our breastwork and landed about 400 men, and in about two hours began to fire at us at our own breastwork, and continued to fire very brisk near about two hours.
At length they stormed our breastwork and we were obliged to flee, and they pursued us as far as Bunker Hill, but we killed or wounded fourteen or fifteen hundred, and the loss sustained by us was few, about one hundred and fifty killed, wounded and missing and on the 17th day of June I arrived at Cambridge about sunset, alive but much fatigued and tired. Blessed be God therefore.”
When reading in this letter that “they pursued us as far as Bunker Hill,” we must bear in mind that while the Americans were ordered to erect breastworks on Bunker Hill, they, by mistake, erected them on Breeds Hill.
We are told that the British landed from the boats and marched up the hill in military order, thinking it an easy matter to capture the redoubt. This was the first real battle which was fought, as the others could only be called massacres, and while in reality a defeat, it is considered by the American people of as much importance as a victory, as it showed the courage of the Provincial troops and that the militia could successfully meet the trained soldiers of England. Bunker Hill monument proclaims to the world that we glory in the results of the memorable day.
Organization of the Continental Army
On the 10th of May, a second session of the Continental Congress was held in Philadelphia. In Massachusetts, General Ward was in command, while other states had their own officers, a state of affairs not conducive to decisive results.
It was during this session, but later than June 17th, that the command was given to George Washington. He arrived at Cambridge on the second of July, and his first object was to relieve Boston of the presence of the British soldiers.
On account of the need of siege guns and ammunition, the occupation of Bunker Hill for this purpose was a failure, and the Commander-in-Chief decided to occupy Dorchester Heights, from which Boston could more easily be stormed. Ordering siege guns from Fort Ticonderoga, which were drawn on sledges, he took possession of the Heights and menaced Boston.
The British General, realizing his danger, evacuated the town, and the American soldiers occupied the place. The name of one Dracut soldier who participated in this movement is William Abbott, born Sept. 8, 1757, son of Daniel and Lucy (Parker) Abbott. He married Patty, daughter of Jacob and Lydia (Hall) Coburn.
Significance
The events that took place on April 18–19, 1775, include some of the most historic — and legendary — moments in American History. Many of the details about these events are found in the letters and depositions written at the time and have been used by many historians as the basis for articles and books about the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
However, interesting details that can be found in the histories of the towns that responded to the Midnight Riders and the Lexington Alarm, including Dracut, are often overlooked. Militia and Minuteman companies from approximately 27 towns fought the British from Lexington to Concord and then from Concord back to Boston. Many of those men remained there and participated in the Siege of Boston and the Battle of Bunker Hill.
Although these local histories are sometimes embellished and border on folklore, they still provide valuable insight into the pride towns felt over standing up against the British forces who fired on the King’s subjects at Lexington and Concord.
This entry about the role of the Dracut Militia is part of “The Shot Heard ‘Round the World,” a collection of entries, images, and objects covering the events of April 18–19, 1775.
Appendix
Silas Roger Coburn
Silas Roger Coburn (1848–) was born in Pelham, New Hampshire. Education was important to his father, Gilbert, who opened a school in the town and sent his son to Philips Academy for his education. Silas Coburn married Adelaide Sladen of Dracut in 1874. They lived in the town, and Coburn was active in public affairs, serving as the Town Clerk. He started researching the town’s history in 1894 and published his book in 1922, which was funded by the town. After his wife died in 1925, Coburn relocated to the Battles Retirement Home in Lowell, Massachusetts. He died in 1932.
Dracut
The area occupied by Dracut was initially occupied by Native American Indians who were part of the Pennacook Confederacy. They were devastated by raids carried out by the Mohawk Tribe and disease that arrived with Europeans. John Eliot, a Puritan missionary, chose Dracut to be the site of a “Praying Town.” In 1642, he had a church, school, courthouse, and other buildings erected. The Indians lived in harmony with the English settlers as the settlement grew. The town was incorporated on February 1, 1702, and given its name.
