Reach Lexington from the T: Alewife Station via the #76 bus (Hanscom Field) or the #62 bus (VA Hospital), M-Sa only. By car, follow signs from Rte. 2 or Rte. 2A.
Lexington, a well-to-do suburb, serving as home to many Harvard professors, possesses a beautiful town green, where rag-tag colonial Minutemen deal humiliating defeat to dashing British Redcoats in the annual Patriot’s Day re-enactment battle, including the “shot heard round the world”. The Museum of Our National Heritage (781-861-6559; www.monh.org) commemorates the events of April 18-19, 1775, when Paul Revere rode through Lexington to warn rebels of the approaching British. The Minuteman Statue by Daniel Chester French (who also sculpted Abe for the Lincoln Memorial and our own John Harvard Statue) embodies the spirit of their resistance. Around the Lexington Green are numerous historic buildings, including the Hancock-Clarke House (Paul Revere’s destination on the night of his fabled ride), the Munroe Tavern (1332 Mass. Ave), which was a field hospital for wounded British regulars, and Buckman Tavern (where the Minuteman waited for the Brits). Tours of historic buildings should be arranged in advance by calling the Lexington Historical Society at 781-862-1703, although the Hancock-Clarke House (36 Hancock St.) is open daily 10am-5pm.
Concord, 18 mi. northwest of Boston, is served by commuter rail from North Station (one way $4), and is accessible by Rte. 2 (see Walden Pond for directions).
Concord is famous as the site of the second conflict of the American Revolution, and for its status as a 19th-century haven for authors and Transcendentalist philosophers. The outbreak of the American Revolution, reenacted here each Patriot’s Day (April 19th) witnessed British Redcoats marching fatefully to their defeat at Old North Bridge. The bridge is a couple miles north of the town center on Monument St. (parking available). The Orchard House (978-369-6975; students $7) provides exhibits on the Alcott Family, it was here that Louisa wrote Little Women. The Old Manse (978-369-3909; students $7) was the first home of Nathaniel Hawthorne and his wife, and includes a replica garden of one Thoreau built for Hawthorne. Informative guided tours are available at these sites, as well as at the Concord Museum (978-369-9609; students $7) and Emerson House (recorded info: 978-369-2236; $7 museum, $5 Emerson House). Henry David Thoreau’s Walden was inspired by nearby Walden Pond.
