Well-known by Bostonians and Londoners alike, Paul Revere was a silversmith and engraver who also was a supporter of the Sons of Liberty.
Revere purchased his home in the North End in 1770 where he would grow his family of eight children. Unfortunately, three would die early in life.
Revere, as a member of the “North End Caucus”, was instrumental in providing information on incoming shipments of tea on the Dartmouth, resulting in the famous Boston Tea Party where colonists dressed in exotic costumes of Indian style and threw tea into Boston Harbor in an effort to protest new taxes from the Crown.
In addition to local involvement in anti-Crown activities, Revere got involved in disseminating information about British troop movements during his time as a courier for the Committee of Public Safety, running routes between Boston, New York and Philadelphia in 1774. Minus his clandestine activities, this job gained him notoriety as far away as England.
Revere, in courier mode, attempted to warn people in the countryside about the British attempt to secure ammunition and stores in Concord in April 1775. Unforutnately, he was captured by the British before he could get to Concord. Regardless, and thanks to two other couriers, news managed to get out and Minutemen were able to muster in Concord in order to drive the British Regulars back to Boston.
During the Revolution, Revere spent time making gunpowder for the Continential Army. Revere also received a Major’s commission in the Militia and advanced through the ranks to Lieutenant Colonel where he took part in many military campaigns, one of which found him at odds with a commanding officer who ended up dismissing Revere from the militia as a result of a military fiasco. In later years, Revere demanded a court martial in order to exonerate his name, and was successful in 1783.