The Shot Heard Round the World: April 19, 1775

“Let it begin here,” the men of Lexington said on the morning of April 19^th.
“Let us die here,” Concord’s minister William Emerson echoed that same morning.

Drawing from the remarkable collection of the Concord Museum, as well as other public and private collections, The Shot Heard Round the World: April 19, 1775 brought together over 50 extraordinary objects that were eyewitnesses to a fateful day in American history.  The exhibition marked the first time that many of these artifacts had been displayed together.

The exhibition, on view at the Concord Museum from April 18 through September 21, 2014, followed an hour-by-hour account of the actions of British Regulars and Patriots on April 19, 1775, presenting a chronological and geographical timeline of the day and representing many of the communities surrounding Boston — Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Arlington (Menotomy), and Cambridge — whose militias played a prominent role in the day-long engagement. Organized by Concord Museum curator David Wood and militaria expert Joel Bohy, the exhibition explored the objects on view and the part they played in the events of the fateful day that began an eight-year fight for independence.

This online exhibition walks you through The Shot Heard Round the World and brings together new material for an extraordinary experience. LEARN about the dramatic events of April 19, 1775; EXPLORE surviving objects and detailed first-person accounts; DISCOVER new stories about the people and places involved.