Paul Revere
Where did Paul Revere come from and how did he get his start in life? How did Paul
Revere become a historical figure in the fight for the freedom of America? Those are good
questions. The answer starts with Apollos Rivoire (Paul Revere’s father). Apollos lived in
France and was 13 years old when the French Huguenots were being persecuted. Trying to
protect him, Apollos’s parents decided to send him to live with his Uncle Simon in Guernsey, an
island that is part of England. His uncle believed that opportunities for work and education
would be better for Apollos in North America. He was sent to America alone, under the care of
the ship’s captain.
The captain, who brought Apollos to America, dropped him off in Boston,
Massachusetts. This captain was used to the responsibility of having young travelers and made
sure to place Apollos into the hands of a good mentor. The captain found Apollos a good
apprenticeship with a man named Mr. Coney. Mr. Coney was an excellent silversmith and
goldsmith, and Apollos decided to work for him for a term of 10 years. After serving Mr. Coney
for 10 years, he decided to work for other people to learn more skills and designs that he would
like to use when he could set up his own business.
When Apollos was 27, he had saved lots of money from all his work. He was ready to get
married, and about that time he met Deborah Hitchbourn. She was the daughter of a very
successful businessman in Boston. The next year, he opened up his own shop as a silversmith
and goldsmith. After opening his new shop, he realized that is was hard for people in Boston to
say his name, so he changed his name to Paul Revere.
Paul and Deborah had their first son in December of 1734. They named him Paul Revere
after his father. At that time in history, students could either go to a Latin school or a Writing
school. Latin school would prepare men for colleges. Writing school would prepare men to be
craftsmen or businessmen. Paul’s father sent him to the North Writing School at the age of 6. He
learned the basics to prepare him to become a craftsman. When he finished school, at the age of
12, he became an apprentice for his father.
Soon, young Paul became one of the best silversmiths and goldsmiths in town. He was a
natural, taking after his father. Paul’s father died unexpectedly when young Paul was only 19
years old. His mother took over the business for a while. The law required shop owners to be at
least 21. Paul took a couple years off to serve in the Massachusetts militia during the French and
Indian War, but then he returned home to run the silversmith business. He taught many
apprentices and journeymen that came through his shop. Many people were amazed at his
skillful work. Paul became very wealthy and also a role model for the town.
When Paul was in his early to mid twenties, he decided it was time to settle down and get
married. He married Sara Orne in August of 1757. The Stamp Act was passed by the British in
1765. This led Samual Adams to found a group called “the Sons of Liberty.” Paul Revere
joined the group. They led protests against the taxation by the British. By 1773 the Revere
family had eight children. Sadly, Sara Orne died on May 1773, when their youngest child was
only a few months old. Paul’s mother cared for the children, but the baby, Isanna, wasn’t
healthy. Isanna only lived four months after her mother died. Paul knew he needed a mother for
his children, his life was very busy and his mother was getting old. Paul married a girl named
Rachel Walker in September 1773.
The Tea Act was passed in the Fall of 1773. The Sons of Liberty set up guards to stop
tea cargo from being unloaded in Boston. The Boston Tea Party was a response to the royal
governor’s refusal to send the shipments back to England. As the Revolutionary War was
starting, Paul Revere became a messenger for it. He rode a horse between Boston and
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Philadelphia or New York City to take messages to people who supported the freedom of
America. Later he delivered messages to members of the First Continental Congress.
Soon, Paul Revere had a nickname. He became know as, “ The Messenger for the
Revolution.” In December 1774, a few days after Paul and Rachel’s first son, Joshua, was born,
Paul was asked to ride to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. This was to alert the town that the British
were sailing up the east to reinforce their fort (Fort William and Mary) and to prevent local
residents from seizing the supply of weapons and ammunition. The militia attacked the fort and
overpowered the guards. They took the muskets, cannons, and gunpowder and hid them at many
places around town. Paul Revere was back in Boston before the British ships arrived in
Portsmouth. General Gage believed Paul was responsible for getting the message to Portsmouth.
His response was to put travel restrictions on the residents of Boston. He also ordered a guard to
watch Paul Revere’s movements. The Sons of Liberty took turns patrolling Boston’s streets at
night and spied on the British. They heard of General Gage’s plan to seize the arms being
stockpiled in Concord. Once again, Paul Revere was asked to spread the word to the militia in
Concord. He was able to get there and the arms were hidden in safe places around the town. Paul
also rode to Lexington to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock of Gage’s plan to arrest them.
General Gage was incensed that his plans were being thwarted. He decided to set up checkpoints
and guard stations along the routes out of Boston to prevent more information from being leaked.
The British planned to raid both Lexington and then Concord on April 18th at midnight.
Paul was called on again to get a message out. Because of the guards William Dawes was also
sent out. The Sons of Liberty thought if two men went out, at least one of them should get the
messages to Lexington and Concord. A pre arranged signal of lanterns was hung in the Old
North Church steeple. There would be two lanterns if the British left by water or only one
lantern if they took a land route. Dawes took the regular route out of Boston. Revere rowed
across the Boston Harbor and borrowed a horse in Charleston to ride from a different route. Paul
and William both reached Lexington to warn the men of the British. Samuel Prescott joined them
for the ride to Concord. This time there were more guards than they expected. Paul was
captured. Dawes escaped, but his horse threw him and he ended up walking back to Lexington.
Samuel Prescott was able to pick his way through a swamp and alerted the folks in Concord.
When the guards realized that the militias had been warned of the British plan, they decided to
take Paul back to Lexington. Hearing gunfire, they let Paul go so they could travel faster to warn
their own troops. They took Paul’s horse, so he had to walk the rest of the way back to
Lexington.
Paul convinced John Hancock to get out of Lexington with Samuel Adams and he went
with them to a nearby town. John Lowell, Hancock’s aide, told Revere that a trunk full of
Hancock’s battle strategies had been accidently left behind in Lexington. The two men hauled
the heavy trunk across the village Green, just as the redcoats began to appear. The men hurried to
find a hiding place as the battle began.
In April of 1775, Revere was sent out to towns all over New England, to raise an army.
America needed a force of 8,000 men as quickly as possible. Revere met with leaders in every
town and large numbers of men quickly responded.
Revere’s next task was to make copper plates to print paper money. The Sons of Liberty
realized that they needed money to pay the soldiers and fund the war, but they didn’t have any
way to make their own money. The British had always been their source of coins. Revere was
chosen for the task since he was a silversmith, goldsmith, and engraver.
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In January 1776, Revere began building a gunpowder mill to produce supplies for the
army. He had been asked to learn how to run and set up a gunpowder factory, by traveling to one
in Philadelphia. By May of 1776 the factory was making enough gunpowder to keep the army
supplied.
Paul Revere worked as a silversmith and goldsmith for over 40 years. However, that
wasn’t all that made him an important figure in Boston. He was a key member of the Sons of
Liberty and was very active in their discussions and plans. He was very smart and was willing to
do anything he could to help fight for the American Revolution. He put himself at risk to be ‘the
Messenger.’ He learned new skills like printing money through copper engraving and running a
gunpowder factory. Paul Revere was dedicated to preserving and ensuring freedom for America.
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