2020 Isaac Davis Trail March – Patriot’s Day Events
Join the Isaac Davis Trail March on Monday, April 20, 2020 starting at the Isaac Davis Homestead in Acton, ending at the Old North Bridge in Concord. Each year, on the Monday of Patriots’ Day weekend, the Acton Minutemen lead the Isaac Davis Trail March, recreating the famous march to Concord over the remnants of the original trail that Isaac Davis and his men traveled on that fateful day, referred to by stone markers labeled “Line of March, April 19, 1775”.
Isaac Davis Trail March
The Isaac Davis Trail March starts at the Isaac Davis Homestead in Acton at 5:50 am, where there will be a short ceremony of remembrance. From there, the march goes to Acton Center, arriving about 6:20 am at the monument where Isaac Davis, Abner Hosmer, and James Hayward are buried, and have another short remembrance ceremony. From there, the march proceeds to Concord over the original route (as closely as possible), arriving at the Old North Bridge about 9:00 am. At the bridge, the Acton Minutemen will take part in a battle reenactment of the Old North Bridge Battle that took place there, along with the 10th and 4th Regiment of Foot. The Acton Minutemen will lay a wreath at the base of the Minuteman statue (which was sculpted in Isaac Davis’s likeness) and fire a volley from amid the bridge in honor of those who fell there from Acton’s ranks.
The public is encouraged to join the minutemen on the Isaac Davis Trail March from Acton to Concord. It is an experience that you and your family will never forget. Join in the history, in the fun, and in the tradition. Make this event a regular tradition in your family and keep the “life” in living history!
Start: Isaac Davis homestead at 39 Hayward Road, Acton, MA
End: Minuteman National Park, Old North Bridge, Concord, MA
Isaac Davis Trail March Schedule:
5:45 AM Start at the Isaac Davis house
6:20 AM in Acton Center
8:55 AM Arrive at Old North Bridge
About The Isaac Davis Trail March
The Isaac Davis Trail, also known as the Acton Trail, is an historic 6-mile trail running east-west in the towns of Acton and Concord, Massachusetts. The trail was significant in 1775 when it was used by Captain Isaac Davis and the Acton Minutemen to march on Concord during the battles of Lexington and Concord. The trail was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
The Isaac Davis Trail March begins at Isaac Davis’ house (which still stands) in Acton, and ends at western end of the North Bridge in the Minuteman National Historical Park in Concord. Most of the route is now paved roads, where in some cases the alignment no longer matches the exact route. Despite this, the trail route evokes the time of the march, with its roadways lined with stone walls, and houses generally set back from the street.
History of the Isaac Davis Trail March
In the early dawn hours of April 19th, 1775, an alarm rider galloped his way throughout the town of Acton, warning of the British advance out of Boston. The objective of the march was Concord, where the British General, Thomas Gage, had heard there were stores of weapons, ammunition, and supplies for a protracted military campaign. As such, when the alarm came to Captain Isaac Davis, the leader of the Acton Minute Company, he sounded the alarm shots to rally his men to come to his house and prepare to head off for Concord, a journey of about 7 miles.
Davis had said that when 30 men had arrived at his house, he would depart for Concord. As his men arrived, Isaac’s wife Hannah, who had been taking care of their four sick children, made the men breakfast and helped them to powder their wigs. Then they formed up in two long columns and headed out. They had only marched a few paces, when Davis halted them, walked back to Hannah as if to say something profound to her, and said only “Take good care of the children”. Those would be the last words she would ever hear him say, for the Acton Minutemen marched off to Concord, met the British head-on at the North Bridge, and Davis was shot and killed. He would go down in history as the first commissioned officer to die in the service of the new young Republic.
Mark your calendar so you don’t forget the next Isaac Davis Trail March on Patriots’ Day starting at the Isaac Davis Homestead in Acton, MA.
Tags: Isaac Davis Trail March, Patriot’s Day Events