Paul Revere Capture Monument

One of the American Revolution’s most iconic stories is that of Paul Revere and his “midnight ride” to warn of the British advance on Concord. The Paul Revere Capture Site marks the location where, on April 18, 1775, Revere was apprehended by British officers, leaving fellow riders William Dawes and Dr. Samuel Prescott to complete their mission without him.

While today the Paul Revere Capture Monument has a prominent location along the Battle Road Trail in Minute Man National Historical Park, its origins are humbler. In 1895, the Town of Lincoln voted to appropriate $100.00 to erect a “suitably inscribed monument” near the site where Revere was captured.

By 1899, a large monument of Quincy granite had been installed, with a bronze tablet set within a stone wall. The location was based on local tradition and the recommendations of a committee who reviewed both the terrain and the subtle changes in road alignment since Revere’s fateful encounter with the British. The location was determined to be within a few yards of the actual site.

As noted in the Cultural Landscape Report for Battle Road Unit, Minute Man National Historical Park, Volume One, the monument was originally sited facing the Battle Road and repositioned in 1956. In 1959, the Paul Revere Capture Site was incorporated into the newly formed Minute Man National Historical Park and in 2000, it was moved to its current location and reoriented to face toward the Battle Road Trail. The semi-circular stone wall enclosure and interpretive waysides were also installed at that time.

The plaque’s inscription tells the story of Paul Revere’s capture:

AT THIS POINT,
ON THE OLD CONCORD ROAD AS IT THEN WAS,
ENDED THE MIDNIGHT RIDE OF
PAUL REVERE.

HE HAD, AT ABOUT TWO O'CLOCK OF THE MORNING
OF APRIL 19, 1775, THE NIGHT BEING CLEAR AND THE
MOON IN ITS THIRD QUARTER, GOT THUS FAR ON HIS
WAY FROM LEXINGTON TO CONCORD, ALARMING THE
INHABITANTS AS HE WENT, WHEN HE AND HIS
COMPANIONS, WILLIAM DAWES, OF BOSTON, AND DR.
SAMUEL PRESCOTT, OF CONCORD, WERE SUDDENLY
HALTED BY A BRITISH PATROL, WHO HAD STATIONED
THEMSELVES AT THIS BEND OF THE ROAD. DAWES,
TURNING BACK, MADE HIS ESCAPE. PRESCOTT,
CLEARING THE STONE WALL, AND FOLLOWING A PATH
KNOWN TO HIM THROUGH THE LOW GROUND, REGAINED
THE HIGHWAY AT A POINT FURTHER ON, AND GAVE THE
ALARM AT CONCORD. REVERE TRIED TO REACH THE
NEIGHBORING WOOD, BUT WAS INTERCEPTED BY
A PARTY OF OFFICERS ACCOMPANYING THE PATROL,
DETAINED AND KEPT IN ARREST. PRESENTLY
HE WAS CARRIED BY THE PATROL BACK
TO LEXINGTON. THERE RELEASED, AND THAT
MORNING JOINED HANCOCK AND ADAMS.

THREE MEN OF LEXINGTON, SANDERSON,
BROWN AND LORING, STOPPED AT AN EARLIER
HOUR OF THE NIGHT BY THE SAME PATROL,
WERE ALSO TAKEN BACK WITH REVERE.