On April 19th this year, we will celebrate the famous battle of Lexington and Concord, which marked the official start of the American Revolutionary War. There’s no better place to be than Boston Metrowest during the upcoming celebrations of events that Wayland residents participated in 250 years ago.
So, what resources does the Wayland Free Public Library (WFPL) have about the American Revolution?
A couple of years ago, I took a second look at a book from our local history collection called The History of the Rise, Progress and Termination of the American Revolution by Mercy Otis Warren. I had a custom box made for it because of its deteriorating condition, having been published in 1805. I became excited when I realized that it is the only book written by a woman from WFPL’s early collection of about fifty books. All the other titles are by men.
Mercy Warren, born in Barnstable, Massachusetts, was not formally educated. However, she came from a progressive family. She was spurred on by listening in on her brothers’ lessons, and by exposure to her father who was an attorney and legislator. Her politically active husband, James Warren, encouraged Mercy to pursue writing. The couple hosted discussions in opposition to British policies and Mercy corresponded with John Adams.
Perhaps to celebrate the town’s Centennial in around 1875, town librarian James Sumner Draper drew a map that represents what we now know as Wayland from a hundred years earlier in 1775. The map depicts the eastern part of Sudbury, which became East Sudbury in 1780 and was renamed Wayland in 1835. This map identifies homes by the owners’ names and sometimes includes the occupation of the owners. If you want to know what Wayland looked like during the Revolutionary War period, not only is it in our collection, but you can find it on digitalcommonwealth.org by entering “map by James Draper.”
Below are some resources written for the bicentennial celebration in 1975. Ask a reference librarian to help you find them in our vertical files in the local history collection:
In Memory of the Revolutionary War Soldiers buried in the North Cemetery, Wayland, Massachusetts, by Palmer True. Includes biographies of 35 soldiers from Sudbury [now Wayland]
Sudbury and Wayland Muster for the Revolution of 1775 by Bobbie Robison. Talks about what Sudbury was like in 1775, how the town supplied large quantities of beef to the Continental army, built a powder house for ammunition, set up a militia and other interesting history.
· The Town Crier: An historical re-creation published by the Town Crier. Four separate publications
There’s so much to learn about the American Revolution. Not everyone supported the rebels who destroyed tea in Boston. There was debate about whether to impose nonimportation and nonexportation of goods between the colonies and Britain in protest to tariffs imposed by the British. Here are three recommended books:
1774: The Long Year of Revolution by Mary Beth Norton
American Spring: Lexington, Concord, and the Road to Revolution by Walter Borneman
Bunker Hill by Daniel Philbrick
Stay tuned! A REV250 committee made up of volunteers from Wayland is planning a range of events in town. You won’t want to miss the festivities
