Was the "shot heard round the world" in Lexington or Concord? An expert says it's complicated.
Two towns in Massachusetts are fundamental to American history, but where the official first shot of the American Revolution happened has been debated for centuries.
The battles at Lexington and Concord were instrumental in the militia's attempt to defy and ultimately defeat British soldiers. The famed poem, "The Shot Heard Round the World," references the first shot fired in the revolution. Turns out, determining where that happened gets a bit technical.
"This has been pretty straightforward and also super complicated for 250 years," said National Park Ranger Jarrad Fuoss.
As he told the story, British soldiers first arrived at the battlefield in Lexington on the morning of April 19, 1775. They were on what was supposed to be a secret mission to raid military supplies from the Lexington militia. But as history tells us, Paul Revere beat them to the punch with his historic midnight ride just hours prior.
"The shot heard round the world"
When the two sides met in Lexington, a rogue shot triggered a quick firefight that was over in minutes. Several men died on both sides and a brigade of hundreds of British soldiers continued to Concord.
That is where, Fuoss said, they ran into a well-prepared troop of hundreds of militia men who had seen Lexington burning from afar.
In Concord, at the Old North Bridge, both sides came face to face. British soldiers fired another rogue shot which ultimately led the colonel for the militia to give the first official order to fire.
"That is the shot hear round the world," said Fuoss. "That is the first moment that the militia soldiers are ordered to fire at their own government soldiers, those British regulars."
History unearthed at Minute Man National Park
In 2023, some of that history was unearthed when a survey at the Minute Man National Park led to the discovery of musket balls from that battle.
"We didn't expect that we were going to find anything out here when we did that survey and then suddenly to find one and another and another and another," Fuoss said. "It was one of those moments where we were excited then it started to sink in that we are standing just feet from the North Bridge."
Those musket balls are set to be on display at the Minute Man National Park this summer.
