Paul Revere

Patriot

Wikimedia Commons

Date Born: Jan 01, 1735

Date Died: May 10, 1818

Birth Country: United States

Ancestral Heritage: France

Fun Facts

Paul was the 11th of 12 children
His father, Appolos Rivoire, was a French Huguenot that fled to America when he was 13 to escape religious persecution
His father Anglicized their last name (changed it to make it easier to say in English)
Paul worked as a silversmith and amateur dentist
He was able to identify the body of a friend, Joseph Warren, that died during the revolutionary war by recognizing wire he had used on a false tooth.
He was an artist that created copper plate engravings and illustrations
He organized a spy ring
Henry Longfellow wrote a famous poem about him, but unlike the poem implies, Paul was not riding by himself and he never reached Concord
He had 16 children, 8 with his first wife, Sarah Orne, and 8 with his second wife, Rachel Walker, whom he married after Sarah’s death.
His home is the oldest building in downtown Boston. It was built in 1680 after a fire destroyed the original building.
He died at the old age of 83. Only 5 of his 16 children were still alive at his death.

Words to Remember

Paul Revere's Ride

On the cusp of a civil war, Longfellow reminds Americans of the sacrifice their forefathers made for freedom

Listen, my children, and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five:
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

By: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Claims to Fame

Rode on horse back to warn patriot leaders that the British were coming.
Took part in the revolutionary war and helped fortify Boston against British attach
Assisted in ratifying the U.S. Constitution in Massachusetts

Opposing Views

Some contend Paul gets too much credit and the other Sons of Liberty do not get enough credit. They content that Longfellow’s poem made Paul overly famous. In response, people note that Paul Revere was already famous before Longfellow wrote the poem and that he became famous because of the danger he willingly undertook riding out on horseback ahead of the British (as opposed to less dangerous routes that others took).