The Patriot Paul Revere

Most of us remember Paul Revere as the patriot who rode from Charleston to Lexington on his horse Brown Beauty to warn of the British coming. But, he was, much more than that. He was born in 1735 in Boston, Massachusetts, one of twelve children. His father, Apollo Rivoire, was an immigrant who later Americanized his name to Revere.

His famous midnight run was memorialized in a ballad by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Although not precisely historical, it is nonetheless part of colonial history. He had also set up a warning system with lanterns to be hung in the steeple of the Old North Church with the code "one if by land, two if by sea."

With the Revolutionary War lasting until 1783, several other important dates are to be remembered. In 1773, the Boston Tea Party, led by the Sons of Liberty, dumped millions of dollars worth of tea in the Boston harbor, attempting to abolish British rule. The Green Dragon Tavern was the meeting place for the Sons of Liberty.

Although he was involved in the infamous, disastrous Penobscot Bay fiasco and later court-martialed in a thirteen officer trial for his part, he was found not guilty, and his reputation was restored.

Revere returned to Boston after the war, and with his son able to take over the silversmith shop, he went on to develop a copper mill and perfected the product to produce rolled sheets of copper. His leaves were used to cover the ship Old Ironsides, also known as the Constitution. The copper works founded in 1801 still operates today. Some of revere's original silverware, engravings, and other works are on display and highly regarded found in the Museum of Fine Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Revere leaves a legacy of mills, factories, and silver works. He was married first to Sarah Orne and had eight children together. Sarah died in childbirth, leaving Revere, a widower with an infant and small children. A few months later, he married Rachel Walker and had five more children. A couple of his daughters' married relatives of the Abraham Lincoln relatives.

In 1958, a 25 cent U.S. postage stamp was produced in his honor. His portrait is found on a $5,000 EE Savings Bond.

A bronze statue on a granite base designed by the artist Cyrus Edwin Dalhin located in Boston.