The Revere Express
Our blog content is provided by past and present staff, outside researchers, and interns. We try to provide a wide variety of content and add new articles often! Browse below to find areas that interest you.Â
Wait, Did You Say 16 Kids?
By: Rachel MeadVisitors to the Paul Revere House are often amazed to learn that Paul Revere had 16 children. No, that is not a typo. He married his first wife, Sarah Orne, on August 17, 1757 when he was 22 and she was 21. They started having children within a year....
“Not in His Right Mind”: Paul Revere and Mental Illness in the Early Republic
By: Nina Rodwin​In May 1788, Paul Revere’s 22-year-old daughter Frances married silversmith Thomas Eayres. Revere encouraged the couple to start their lives in Worcester, sensing that Eayres’ industriousness and “good morals” would help establish him as a new...
Onesimus Mather and the Origins of Inoculation in Boston
By: Rowan WheelerIn 1721, Boston was in the middle of a mass exodus. That summer, hundreds of Bostonians fled to smaller villages and towns to escape the threat of smallpox. That year’s pandemic would wipe out 14% of Boston’s population. Meanwhile, minister Cotton...
Sinking Your Teeth into History: Sugar, Dentistry, and Paul Revere
By: Ruaidhri CroftonAmong the items in the Paul Revere Memorial Association’s collection is a small and somewhat morbid-looking partial denture carved from ivory. This early dental prosthetic device was not something that any Revere family member wore. Rather, the man...
Redeveloping Place and Narrative at the Site of the Liberty Tree
Editor’s Note: Today’s guest scholar post comes to us from Maddie Webster, and is a timely reflection on the origins of commemoration for the Liberty Tree in Boston, a historic site of great significance for varied stakeholders. Maddie is a Ph.D. student in the...
A Model Society: Victorian Boston in the British Women’s Movement
Editor’s Note: As we approach the centennial anniversary of the 19th Amendment’s passage, we are excited to present today’s guest scholar posting from Agnes Burt. Agnes’ work explores one of the lesser-known transatlantic struggles for women’s equality on the way to...
A Street View of the Paul Revere House
By Patrick M LeeheyEditor’s Note: This article is written from the point of view of a visitor standing in the street looking at the Paul Revere House and its neighboring structures. It is meant to serve as a primer for exterior tours of North Square and as extra...
“Horrid Scenes of Villainy”: The Stamp Act Protest of August 1765
By Nina RodwinAugust 14, 1765, most likely began as a typical day for Paul Revere. As he went about the day’s work at his silversmith shop on Clark's Wharf, Revere was probably unaware that a crowd had hung an effigy of Andrew Oliver, Boston’s official Stamp Act...
The Howards of Clark’s Square
By: Ruaidhrà Crofton​Editor’s Note: This Express post is excerpted from our most recent Revere Gazette article. The article stands as the first of a two-part issue that takes a fresh look at Robert Howard’s life and his role in early colonial Boston society. Part two...
A Reflection on Racial Injustice and the Role of Public History from the Paul Revere Memorial Association
The Paul Revere Memorial Association stands for racial justice in America and in Boston. We believe that education at public history sites has a tremendously important role to play in working towards a just society for all people. In order to better effect change, we...