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Project Appleseed. 13 Colonies. One Nation. One People. One Day...
By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
Their flag to April's breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood,
And fired the shot heard round the world.
(Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Concord Hymn"
written for the North Bridge
memorial)
On April 19th, 1775, British colonial farmers, shopkeepers, lawyers, doctors and craftsmen chose to face one of the world's most feared and best equipped armies in a dispute over their rights and privileges as Englishmen. Learn why and how these brave
early Americans did what they did at an Appleseed near you. RWVA
instructors use Brandeis University History Professor David Hackett
Fischer's best-seller Paul Revere's Ride to teach how the
Revolutionary War began in a series of stories that capture the initial
hesitation as well as the ferocity of that day. After attending, you
will be able to answer these four questions:
- When and where was the American Revolution won? The answer, direct from a founder, will surprise you...
- Where did the Revolutionary War break out? Not one in a thousand Americans knows this.
- Who fired the first shots on Lexington Common? Historians may not know, but we'll be glad to supply at least circumstantial proof.
- Why did the Redcoats break and run at the North Bridge? When faced with rude country colonials...
Appleseed
seeks to honor the Founders by remembering the choices they made. And
we seek to pass on to our children what we were given: a third
option for civic participation rather than a choice between submission and
violence.
Unhappy it is, though, to reflect that a brother's
sword has been sheathed in a brother's breast and that the once-happy
and peaceful plains of America are either to be drenched with blood, or
inhabited by a race of slaves. Sad alternative! But can a virtuous man
hesitate in his choice?
(G. Washington, letter written May 31, 1775)
"Young
man, what we meant in going for those Redcoats was this: we always had
governed ourselves and we always meant to. They didn't mean we should."
(Captain Levi Preston, of the Danvers militia, at age 91, remembering
the day)
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