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History is for Everyone

MA, USA

Bedford

The Revolutionary War history of Bedford.

Why Bedford Matters

Bedford, Massachusetts

[needs_review — scaffold only]

Bedford's contribution to April 19 is preserved in cloth: the Bedford Flag, a crimson silk banner with the motto "Vince aut Morire" (Conquer or Die), is the oldest surviving military flag in the United States. It was likely carried to the North Bridge by Nathaniel Page and is now held by the Bedford Free Public Library. Bedford minutemen marched alongside Acton and Concord companies in the day's fighting.

Paul Revere's engraving of the Boston Massacre, 1770
Paul Revere, 'The Bloody Massacre Perpetrated in King Street Boston on March 5th 1770' — hand-colored engraving, 1770. Library of Congress. Public domain.