Paul Revere

Lore & Background

Paul Revere was born in the North End of Boston, the third of 12 children. His father, Apollos Rivoire, a French Huguenot, had anglicized his name to Paul Revere. Revere became an apprentice to his father at age 13, learning silversmithing. He later served as a second lieutenant in a provincial artillery regiment during the French and Indian War, then returned to Boston to run the family silver shop. He married Sarah Orne in 1757, and after her death in 1773, married Rachel Walker.

Revere was a member of the Sons of Liberty and a strong supporter of the Patriot cause. He produced politically charged engravings, including a depiction of the Boston Massacre copied from Henry Pelham's drawing without permission. He participated in the Boston Tea Party in December 1773 and served as a courier for the Boston Committee of Public Safety from December 1773 to November 1775, making 18 documented rides. In 1774, he rode to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, sparking a raid on Fort William and Mary for gunpowder.

After the battles of Lexington and Concord, Revere could not return to British-held Boston. He was denied a commission in the Continental Army but served as a courier and printed local currency. He later served as an officer in the Massachusetts Militia, ending after the Penobscot Expedition, for which he was absolved of blame. Following the war, he returned to silversmithing and expanded into iron casting, bronze bell and cannon casting, and copper sheathing. In 1800, he became the first American to successfully roll copper into sheets for naval vessels.

Reader's Guide

Paul Revere's significance lies in his role as a key figure in the early American Revolutionary War, particularly through his midnight ride of 1775, which alerted minutemen to the British advance and helped spark the battles of Lexington and Concord. This event, dramatized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1861 poem 'Paul Revere's Ride,' cemented his status as an American folk hero. Beyond the ride, Revere contributed to the Patriot cause as a member of the Sons of Liberty, a participant in the Boston Tea Party, and a courier for the Boston Committee of Public Safety. His organizational efforts included helping to establish an intelligence and alarm system to monitor British troop movements. After the war, Revere's legacy extended into industry: he became a successful silversmith and industrialist, pioneering the rolling of copper sheets for naval sheathing in 1800. His life reflects the transition from colonial craftsman to revolutionary activist to early American industrialist, though his military service was marred by the disastrous Penobscot Expedition, for which he was cleared of blame.

Did You Know?

• Revere was part of the first group of change ringers to ring the new bells at Christ Church (Old North Church) in Boston in 1750.
• He took up dentistry to help make ends meet during a business downturn after the Stamp Act of 1765.
• Revere copied Henry Pelham's drawing of the Boston Massacre without permission to create his famous engraving.
• He became the first American to successfully roll copper into sheets for naval vessel sheathing in 1800.