BY SCARLETT HOEY
It’s 1775. Wayland is part of Sudbury. Some of the earliest protests of taxation and for self-governance have come out of Town Meeting, specifically calls to repeal or suspend the 1765 Stamp Act. Following calls for increased militia readiness, 36-year old Captain Isaac Loker has been drilling his company of men and boys in a back field in preparation for a battle.
Early on April 19, a messenger rode into Wayland/Sudbury bringing news that the British Regulars have left Boston and are heading to Concord. The East Sudbury troops gathered on the common in front of the meetinghouse at the corner of Pelham Island and Cochituate Roads. Twenty-one horses and riders under Loker gathered in front of the church along with a column of 136 men, who shouldered their flintlocks and started up the road to Concord.
They were accompanied by members of the Sudbury alarm company and other companies of the town. The number of the eastern and western parishes of Sudbury sent at least 302 men to Concord. Of the 115 men from the eastern parish, there were 75 militia led by Captain Joseph Smith and 40 in the minute company led by Nathaniel Cudworth. They marched on to Concord and Lexington with units from other towns joining them along the way. Many of the Wayland men who died that day and in other Revolutionary War battles are buried in North Cemetery.
Wayland resident Palmer True documented the 35 soldiers buried there in “In Memory of the Revolutionary War Soldiers buried in the North Cemetery, Wayland, Massachusetts.” The roll call of revolutionary veterans buried are familiar as present street names and historic-homes: Bent, Damon, Grout, Heard, Loker, Noyes, Rice, Russell, and Sherman.
Wayland’s (colonial Sudbury’s) connection to the American Revolution runs deep through the stories and landscapes around us. Cow Common serves as a reminder of how flourishing the Sudbury River was for early farmers in town and how beef was a main export that helped sustain the Continental Army. Loker’s home where he reportedly drilled his company in a backyard field, is still standing near Loker School.
Next time you pass the small green triangle at the four-way intersection near The Villa and Mel’s, notice a marker placed in 2008 honoring Lokerville, named for the generations of that family and remembering that before the shoe industry in Cochituate, Lokerville was the largest village in the southern part of Wayland. Walking through North Cemetery reveals another moving Revolutionary story—the shared death date on the gravestones of Thomas and Mary Bent. Both passed away on the same July morning in 1775, with Thomas, age 68, dying from battle wounds sustained at Lexington-Concord and Mary reportedly succumbing to illness brought on by weeks of caring for her wounded husband. Learn more revolutionary Wayland stories at the museum-view True’s research and Bicentennial photos.
The Wayland Rev250 Committee and other organizations like the Wayland Museum are planning America’s semi quincentennial celebrations, building on previous commemorations that shaped our understanding of history. Part of this celebration is The Rev250 Committee logo design contest which was extended to April 25. All residents can participate. For more details go to https://bit.ly/WaylandRev250LogoContest
Archival documents, such as petitions and town meeting records, show Wayland’s (colonial Sudbury) support for self-government and the movements of the Provincial congress. Evidence of Wayland’s responses for militia readiness is noted eight times in town meeting discussions about a powder house, as reported in town records. The Bicentennial celebrations in 1976 produced publications like” The War Years which conveyed details of April 19 as outlined above. Sudbury, Massachusetts 17651781” and Wayland Bicentennial Committee member Bobbie Robinson wrote “Sudbury and Wayland muster for the Revolution of 1775.” This foundation of dedicated historical work helps us continue exploring Wayland’s significant place in American history.
