Minute Man National Historical Park ⓘ

In the days, weeks, and months leading to April 19, 1775, tensions across the colony of Massachusetts reached a boiling point. The previous summer British warships closed Boston Harbor, Royal Governor, General Thomas Gage, tasked with implementing the wildly unpopular Massachusetts Government Act, also dismissed the elected Massachusetts legislature, the Great and General Court. In October Patriot leaders called for a Provincial Congress in Massachusetts. Towns across Massachusetts chose to send representatives to this essentially illegal body which immediately proceeded to assume political power. They took control of the colony's militia forces, and began stockpiling arms, ammunition and provisions. Their goal was to raise and equip an army of 15,000 men. Isolated in Boston, General Gage was running out of options. At last, following the advice he received from his superiors in England, Gage decided to send a force of around 700 soldiers on a secret expedition into the countryside to seize and destroy arms and supplies and disrupt the colonists' warlike preparations. His target was the town of Concord, 18 miles northwest of Boston, where a considerable quantity of these arms and supplies were stockpiled. The expedition consisted of 21 companies of Grenadiers and Light Infantry, the elite soldiers of the army. Grenadiers were chosen for their height and courage. They wore distinctive bear-fur caps which adds to their height and frightening appearance. Light Infantry were soldiers chosen for their physical speed, stamina and intelligence. They were trained to spread out, take advantage of cover, and skirmish with the enemy. Their uniforms were adapted to this service with short coats and leather caps instead of brimmed hats which helped them move more easily through woods.

On the morning of April 19, 1775, seven-hundred British soldiers passed the bluff on their march to raid military stockpiles in Concord. Later that day the same British column, excluding scores of casualties, fought a short rear-guard action on the bluff to cover their hasty retreat to Boston. After rushing through a hail of musketry along the Bay Road, the weary British soldiers crossed a small bridge near the home of Tabitha Nelson; six hundred yards west of the bluff. In the blink of an eye concealed militia from Captain Parker’s Lexington company poured a heavy volley into the British ranks before retiring to better ground. When flanking companies of British light infantry engaged Parker’s men at the small wooded rise, the lead elements of the British column continued down the road and passed the Whittemore Farm.

With over a thousand Colonial militia quickly closing on the column, the British rear-guard passed the Whittemore house and the Bull Tavern before ascending the sloped sides of the bluff. From this commanding viewpoint covered by trees the Regulars watched Colonial militia advance to the tavern, a building that Reading militia man Rev. Edmund Foster knew as “Benjamin’s Tavern.” The British rear-guard then opened fire from the high ground at the bluff and covered the lead elements of their column now ascending Fiske hill. Rev. Edmund Foster with the Reading militia near the Tavern recalled,

“a man rode up on horse back unarmed. The enemy were then passing round the hill just below the tavern. They had posted a small body of their troops on the north side of the hill, which fired upon us. The horse and his rider fell instantly to the ground; the horse died immediately, but the man received no injury. We were quick at the spot, from which we returned the fire.”

Dramatically outnumbered and flanked the British detachment atop the bluff withdrew. As the regulars descended the rocky hillside into the low area behind, more colonial militia hidden behind trees, rocks and fence rails on Fiske Hill opened fire. Desperately attempting to protect the column and cover the retreat, a mounted British officer galloped to the front. Edmund Foster continued,

“An officer, mounted on an elegant horse, and with drawn sword in his hand, was riding backwards and forwards, commanding and urging on the British troops. A number of Americans behind a pile of rails, raised their guns and fired with deadly effect. The officer fell, and the horse took fright, leaped the wall, and ran directly towards those who had killed his rider. The enemy discharged their musketry in that direction, but their fire took no effect.”

Colonial militia quickly stripped the horse of the officers effects, finding a beautiful brace of engraved pistols. At the time, the militia claimed their prize belonged to Col. Pitcairn commanding the detachment of British Marines, however recent scholarship indicates the pistols instead belonged to another British officer, Captain William Crosbie of the 38th Regiment’s grenadier company, wounded on April 19, 1775. After abandoning their position near the bluff and descending into the low ground before Fiske Hill the British rear-guard ran a gauntlet of “plaguy fire,” from the concealed militia. In this area, Concord Historian Frank Coburn stated, “many British were wounded, and many killed, along this part of Battle Road.” At some point between Parker’s Revenge and Lexington, colonial militia also wounded Lt. Col Smith, commanding the entire British column. Exhausted from continuous skirmishing and missing numerous officers, the British ranks quickly devolved into a general route one mile from Lexington center. Fortunately, for the exhausted British soldiers a relief column of 1000 reinforcements and two artillery pieces arrived in Lexington. When the fighting passed from the bluff and Fiske Hill, the injured lay scattered through the fields and homes all around. In the area of the bluff, historians recorded the burial of at least two British soldiers. The fighting in this area had been short yet fierce.

During the 19th and 20th centuries the bluff and surrounding landscape underwent many changes. In the New Republic era additional farmhouses dotted the landscape and new businesses appeared driving up local travel. In 1802 and 1806 portions of the Battle Road were straightened and some new segments by-passed historic sites. In the area of the bluff, a newly constructed road by-passed areas such as the Nelson farms and accommodated increased traffic. Directly at the base of the bluff the new road intersected with the historic Bay Road, now called Massachusetts avenue. In addition, the landscape evolved when a larger tavern replaced the historic Bull’s Tavern. Construction workers also quarried rocks from the hillside east of the bluff throughout the 19th century for various projects. Although altered, the bluff remained a source of local legend concerning April 19, 1775. In 1885 residents erected a small monument at the base of the bluff to commemorate the revolutionary history of the site. In the century following, construction work continuously cut into the historic cliff face. In 1938, workers even blasted into the rock to widen the road for automobiles, altering the bluff’s appearance dramatically. In the later 20th century, a corridor of power lines arced over the bluff, dramatically altering the battlefield viewshed yet again. On September 21, 1959, Public Law 86-321 established Minute Man National Historical Park, incorporating the area surrounding the bluff. The mission of the new park was to “approximate the cultural environment that existed in 1775 and preserve and interpret individual resources that contribute to understanding the events of the Battle of Lexington and Concord.” As part of this preservation and interpretation initiative, the National Park Service constructed a Visitors Center a short distance west of the bluff and reestablished pedestrian walking spaces throughout the area. In 1996 the Battle Road Trail connected major historical sections of the park following the original bay road. Today, the National Park Service preserves and interprets the bluff as a core historic site within Minute Man National Historical Park.

Over more than three hundred years, The Wayside and its families witnessed and influenced both Concord's and America's recorded history. In 1775 the Wayside was home to Samuel Whitney the muster master for Concord's minute men and a delegate to the Provincial Congress. In the 19th century famed authors Louisa May Alcott, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Margaret Sidney (Harriet Lothrop) lived at this incredible site.

Learn more about special events at the Wayside and throughout the park: The Wayside House is open seasonally and for special events. Please visit our calendar of events for more information about programs and tours.

Early occupants of the Wayside included Samuel Whitney, member of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress in 1775 and muster master for Concord's minute man companies. On April 19, 1775 the house was directly mentioned by General Thomas Gage as a place to be searched for arms and supplies. Despite British soldiers marching right past the house as they entered Concord there is no evidence they stopped and searched it. The Wayside is among the park's 11 April 19th Witness Houses.

During the 19th century a succession of authors called this house home; most notably Louisa May Alcott and Nathaniel Hawthorne . They, along with their neighbors Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau joined many others such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Herman Melville to begin a literary tradition recognized as distinctly American.

As part of the first generation to inherit the Revolution, these early writers helped shape the new nation's cultural identity even as they struggled with the Revolution's legacy and the unresolved issue of slavery. While in the house in the 1840s, the Alcott family aided at least one freedom seeker on his flight to freedom. The Wayside is now a site on the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. In 1883 Harriett Lothrop (pen name Margaret Sidney), children's author and creator of the "Five Little Peppers," her husband Daniel and daughter Margaret lived in and preserved The Wayside for future generations. The Lothrops were the last private family to live here. In 1965, The Wayside became part of Minute Man National Historical Park and the first literary site added to the National Park Service.

Shortly after the arrival of European colonists the institution of slavery impacted every aspect of Anglo-European society including the small community of Concord. Samuel Whitney , merchant, delegate to the Provincial Congress, and muster master of the Concord Minute Men enslaved two men at his home now known as The Wayside. Samuel Whitney's family was one of twelve enslaving families in Concord when the American Revolution began. According to a story told by Henry David Thoreau, one enslaved man named Casey escaped from Concord just before the American Revolution. Although the exact details of Casey's journey remain a mystery, he returned to Concord as a free man after the war.

When colonial patriots voiced their commitment to the fight for freedom and made the first military stand against British oppression in April 1775, they did so while maintaining a firm grasp on human enslavement.

This contradiction was not lost on everyone. Lemuel Haynes, an African American Patriot wrote,

"...I query, whether Liberty is so contracted a principle as to be Confin'd to any nation under Heaven; nay, I think it not hyperbolical to affirm, that Even an Affrican, has Equally as good a right to his Liberty in common with Englishmen."

People of color fought for freedom in many ways, including a series of lawsuits now known as Freedom Suits. In 1783, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court declared slavery was incompatible with the 1780 Massachusetts Constitution. Although the state did not abolish slavery outright these victories ushered in an era of gradual emancipation. To learn more about Freedom Suits visit https://www.masshist.org/endofslavery/index.php?id=54 By the 1830s, organized groups in Concord and other northern states advocated for general abolition. Unfortunately, the institution of slavery steadily grew across America. Although the enforcement of a 1793 Fugitive Slave Law remained relatively lax, freedom seekers that escaped north were never totally free from discrimination and the fear of being kidnapped. In Boston a large community of free African Americans and freedom seekers formed by the early 1800s. They were soon threatened by the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850. To learn more about this community visit Boston African American National Historical Site.

By April of 1845, The Wayside, then dubbed "Hillside," was owned by Bronson and Abigail Alcott whose children were Anna, Louisa, Elizabeth, and May. The Alcott's were prominent abolitionists in Concord and maintained active ties to various anti-slavery organizations across the United States. In late 1846 and early 1847, the Alcotts aided at least one freedom seeker on his journey to freedom along the Underground Railroad. This network of safe houses and sympathetic individuals helped ferry freedom seekers away from slavery. Mrs. Alcott wrote to her brother in January, 1847:

"We have had an interesting fugitive here for 2 weeks--right from Maryland. He was anxious to get to Canada and we have forwarded him the best way we could. His sufferings have been great, his intrepidity unparalleled. He agrees with us about [boycotting] slave produce. He says it is the only way the abolition of the slave can ever be effected. He says it will never be done by insurrection..."

According to Abigail, the family discussed economic pressure as a way to facilitate the destruction of slavery. Although the family hoped a general boycott of goods produced using enslaved labor would bring about a quicker resolution, the system remained intact for another eighteen years until the American Civil War. In 1847, Bronson Alcott described the arrival of this same freedom seeker in his journal:

"He is scarce thirty years old, athletic, dexterous, sagacious, and self-relying. He has many of the elements of a hero. His stay with us has given image and a name to the dire entity of slavery, and was an impressive lesson to my children, bringing before them the wrongs of the black man and his tales of woe."

The Alcott's involvement in the antislavery movement brought young Louisa and her sisters into contact with some of its most ardent champions of abolition: William Lloyd Garrison, Frederick Douglass, John Brown, Wendell Phillips, and Theodore Parker to name a few.

In a secluded woodlot near the home of Col. James Barrett there is a solitary grave, marked by a late 18th century headstone. Surprisingly the grave is not that of a British soldier nor anyone killed on April 19, 1775, though it does capture a tragic aspect of Concord’s past and the town’s spirit of survival. Tucked into the folds of a small hillside and surrounded by a low stone wall is the grave marker “Erected In Memory of Mr. James Chandler who died of the Small Pox Dec 8th, 1792 in the 79th year of his age.” Although the marker has remained beautifully undisturbed for nearly 228 years, there is much the grave of Mr. Chandler can tell us.

James Chandler, born August 28, 1714, lived an incredible yet tragic life. At the age of 23, Chandler married Ms. Mary Wright and the couple had two children before purchasing a home not far from Col. James Barrett’s farm in 1746. Unfortunately, tragedy struck the very same year and Mary Chandler died. Mary’s family buried her in Concord’s Old Hill Burying Ground with the inscription on her grave reflecting her faith; “Life is short but death is sure, Sin is the wound, God is the cure.” 1 Now a single father with two children to care for, James Chandler married again in 1747. This second marriage to Mary Flagg bore two more children; however happiness did not last long. Just six years after their union, his second Mary also passed away. A widower twice over, James buried Mary in Concord’s Old Hill Burying Ground with the inscription on her stone warning “memento mori,” Latin for “remember that you must die.” Mary Flagg Chandler’s epitaph goes on to say, “Here mix'd with earth, her ashes must remain Till death shall die, and mortals rise again.”

Over the next three years, the twice widowed James raised his four children at their farm near the Concord River. In 1756 James Chandler married his third wife, Mary Whiteaker, and shortly thereafter the couple welcomed a daughter into the world. This time love would last and Mary survived to the age of 74, dying in 1791, just one year before James would succumb to smallpox. The family buried her in Concord’s Old Hill Burial Ground; her epitaph reads “Death like an overflowing flood, Do sweep us all away.”

During the later years of his life, James Chandler heavily engaged in local politics, acting as a selectman in Concord for several years and holding the rank of Ensign in the town militia. When political tensions reached a boiling point in 1774, Chandler was too old for active service, but helped the rebel cause by serving as a member of Concord’s Committee of Correspondence. On April 19, 1775 Chandler helped subvert British search efforts by storing five kegs of gunpowder in his home. Though the Regulars raided Col. Barrett’s farm only yards away, they did not discover Mr. Chandler secret and he escaped the day unharmed. 2

James Chandler may have survived the famous events of April 19, 1775, however his death 17 years later marked another important and dark time in Concord’s history. In an era before germ theory and the scientific understanding of disease, smallpox often came in waves that ravaged communities without warning. Easily spread and often bringing symptoms that included fever, body-aches, blistering rashes and blindness, the disease killed quickly. In 1721, James Chandler lived through one of the largest recorded smallpox epidemics in Boston and the subsequent aftershocks that followed year after year. While the virus claimed many lives in Concord annually, certain years saw larger epidemics spread through the countryside.

When smallpox took hold within a community very little could be done to alleviate the disease. Physicians frequently used quarantine and isolation to stop the rapid transmission of the virus, however sometimes those measures were not enough. By 1726 Boston Physician Zabdiel Boylston introduced the new and controversial practice of inoculation to the population of Massachusetts. 3 Far from the precise science of epidemiology and infectious disease control we know today, physicians discovered the intentional introduction of weakened versions of viruses like smallpox resulted in higher survivability rates for those infected.

These inoculations proved an incredible lifesaving measure for the people of Boston. In 1776 the Siege of Boston presented a vulnerable gathering of people and the opportunity for medical advancement. The already crowded town hosted upwards of 4,000 British soldiers and the besieging colonial militia numbered nearly 20,000. An outbreak of smallpox under these circumstances would be devastating, but the inoculation of colonial soldiers and civilians granted some protection and saved countless lives. In 1776 Abigail Adams even wrote that “The fatal effects of the small pox there, has led almost every person to consent to Hospitals in every Town. In many Towns, already around Boston the selectmen… have granted Liberty for inoculation. I hope the necessity is now fully seen.” 4 Although many undertook inoculation and spared Boston from catastrophe, the practice remained controversial in many religious circles as an interference with divine will.

When news of another smallpox outbreak in Boston reached Concord in 1792 the community acted quickly. As one early historian noted in 1835, “A hospital was fitted up where Mr. Augustus Tuttle now lives; and 130 persons went there, at several times, to be inoculated under the care of the three physicians of the town. From some cause the disease spread.” To fight the outbreak, Concord set up a hospital at the home of Ephraim Potter however casualties quickly mounted. Near what became known as the “Pest House,” “a small burying-ground and grave-stone now mark the melancholy ravages of this disease. Ten persons were its victims,-- 2 by inoculation and 8 by contagion,-- and were buried by themselves; it being considered improper to inter them in the usual ground.” 5 Common practice in the period required the immediate burial of victims to avoid further spread, thus several isolated smallpox cemeteries appeared around Concord. Today, the “Pest House” and cemetery still exist along Fairhaven Road in Concord. 6

Although Concord’s physicians attempted to slow transmission through quarantine and inoculations, the virus eventually made its way to the home of James Chandler. Presently, it is unknown if any additional Chandler family members contracted the disease. When James Chandler succumbed to smallpox on December 8, 1792, his surviving children and neighbors confronted the problem of burial. Unable to transport James’s body to Concord for burial near his wives, his children instead selected a small plot at the edge of their own property. In the years following James Chandler’s death his home near Col. Barrett’s was removed; possibly demolished for fear of further smallpox infection. 7 Today, Chandler’s grave remains, marked by a large slate headstone adorned with the common mortuary depiction of a late-18th century “Death’s Head,” as well as the inscription mentioned above. Although Chandler’s grave is the only marked burial in the confines of the small plot, further research is needed to determine if he is truly the only smallpox victim buried there. In total, 26 persons died from the 1792 smallpox epidemic, slightly more than the average of 24 persons the disease claimed a year in Concord from 1779-1828. 8

While James Chandler’s life came to a tragic end, it serves as a story of hope in the modern era. During his 79 years of existence, Chandler married three times, raised five children, helped create a new nation, and though he did not benefit, observed the wonder of medical advancements like inoculation. James Chandler’s death, along with the millions who lost their lives to smallpox, informed medical science into the modern era. In 1796 the introduction of a new smallpox vaccine significantly decreased the devastation of the disease and less than 188 years later in 1980, the World Health Organization certified smallpox globally eradicated; the result of widespread vaccination and proper medical care. 9 Chandler’s humble grave reminds us that the past and present share a deep connection that we continue to learn from.

Citations [1] Concord, Massachusetts Births, Marriages, and Deaths, 1635-1850 (Concord, Ma: T.Todd, Printer, 1895), 84. [2] Lemuel Shattuck, A History of the town of Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts: from its earliest settlement to 1832; and of the adjoining towns, Bedford, Acton, Lincoln, and Carlisle; containing various notices of country and state history not before published (Boston: Russell, Odiorne and company; Concorde, J. Stacy, 1835), 91.; Charles H. Chandler, The Descendants of Roger Chandler of Concord, Mass., 1658/ compiled by Charles H. Chandler , (Provo, Utah: Herald Print. Co., 1949.), 32. [3] Boylston AW, Williams AE (2008). Zabdiel Boylston’s evaluation of inoculation against smallpox. JLL Bulletin: Commentaries on the history of treatment evaluation https://www.jameslindlibrary.org/articles/zabdiel-boylstons-evaluation-of-inoculation-against-smallpox/ (accessed, May 7, 2020) [4] Letter from Abigail Adams to John Adams, 13-14 July 1776 [electronic edition]. Adams Family Papers: An Electronic Archive. Massachusetts Historical Society. Accessed May 4, 2020 http://www.masshist.org/digitaladams [5] Shattuck, A History of the town of Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts , 224 [6] National Register of Historic Places, Pest House, Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, National Register # 77000174. [7] Frederic C Detwiler, Col. James Barrett Farm Historic Structure Report (Georgetown, Ma: New England Landmarks, 2007), 9. [8] Shattuck, A History of the town of Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts , 224 [9] World Health Organization, “The Smallpox Eradication Programme- SEP (1966-1980),” WHO.int. https://www.who.int/features/2010/smallpox/en/ (accessed, May, 5, 2020)

Minute Man National Historical Park offers excellent opportunities for birdwatching! The variety of landscapes within the park's 1000 plus acres provide prime nesting habitat, plentiful food sources, and ideal pit-stops for migratory birds. With more than 160 species spending at least some time in the park and 50 species known to breed here, you can always find a feathered friend along the trail. Keep scrolling to learn more about a few favorite species.

A spring, summer and fall resident of Minute Man National Historical Park, the Great Blue Heron can often be spotted fishing in the Concord River or sunning itself by the North Bridge. This bird is easy to spot, as it is the largest of the North American heron species, measuring up to 53 inches tall with a wingspan of over 6 and a half feet! It also has a distinctive “S” shaped neck and knobby orange knees. Herons will make their home in fresh or saltwater marshlands but will head to grassy areas and farm fields to forage for food. These birds can thrive in a number of habitats from lakeshores in Northern Maine, to the mangroves of South Florida and even along the coast of Southeast Alaska! Because of the Great Blue can make a home almost anywhere, it has adapted to a pretty diverse diet; eating fish, frogs, rodents, bird and bugs. Mama herons will typically lay 3-5 eggs once a year, but sometimes you might just find 7 eggs in their large, tree-bound stick platforms that serve as nests. Both male and female birds feed the young after they’ve hatched. Baby Great Blues can fly about 2 months after birth and will fledge about a month following that. These harsh squawking birds are doing well in North America, their population stable, and with the warming climate, have expanded their range into Canada.

While Ben Franklin never actually proposed the turkey be named the national bird, in a letter to his daughter Sarah, he did praise the fowl as courageous and a “true original native of America”. Despite the love of a founding father, the Wild Turkey actually went extinct in Massachusetts in the mid-19th century. In the 1970’s the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife reintroduced 37 turkeys to the Bay State and today the population is more than 20,000. These members of the pheasant family like to hang out near the Minute Man Visitor Center in Lexington, but don’t approach them or you might find 4 feet and 20lbs of feathers zooming toward you. Turkeys can fly more than 50 mph for short distances and will nest in trees. These birds make their home in a variety of woodland areas, feeding on grasses, roots, berries, seeds, insects and sometimes small amphibians and reptiles like salamanders. Male turkeys breed with a number of females each season and each female will lay roughly 10 eggs. A baby turkey is called a poult, and sticks with its mom for just a few months before courageously taking on the wide world.

For more information on the Turkey, click here for a great Species Spotlight from the Northeast Temperate Network.

If one bird can set your heart aflutter, it has got to be the Great Horned Owl. Seriously, tell us you would feel anything less than total awe (and a little bit of terror) standing outside the Hartwell Tavern on a cool October evening listening to the haunting hoot of the so-called Tiger Owl. These powerful birds of prey spend their evenings stalking a variety of prey species, from field mice to porcupines. Great Horned Owls have a wide home range in North America; from Nova Scotia, to Mexico, to sub-arctic areas of Alaska. Here in Massachusetts they are also well distributed and are often spotted by the aware birder. This owl nests in coniferous forests, frequently using old nests left behind by large raptors like hawks or eagles. Each year the female will lay 2 to 3 eggs and both male and female will spend several months feeding and teaching the young owlets.

For more information on the Great Horned Owl, click here and download a Species Spotlight from the Northeast Temperate Network.

One of our favorite birds, the loud and proud Northern Cardinal is a welcome sight within the often-muted landscape of Minute Man National Historical Park. As a year-round residents of Massachusetts, the cardinal will make its home along edges or clearings of forests, as well as more open, developed portions of the park, like the Buttrick gardens. Like many bird species, male and female are fairly easy to differentiate. The male cardinal has bright red feathers with a black mask, while the female has mostly tawny colored feathers with rose to red colored highlights on her head and back. Breeding couples will stay together for multiple seasons and in a deeply cute aspect of their courting ritual, they will sway as they sing to each other. A cardinal couple will brood up to 4 times a year and both male and female take responsibility for the nestlings.

You can add Hollywood voice over artist to the Red-Tailed Hawk’s long list of skills. When you hear the eerie, raspy screech of a bird of prey on TV and in the movies, it’s often the call of this ravenous raptor… even when it’s an eagle on screen. While we’re not sure whether Red-Tailed Hawks also enjoy reenacting, you can often spot them perched in trees or soaring high above the Battle Road Trail. These year-round residents are comfortable in just about every landscape within the park, from the open farm fields and roadsides where they can hunt for voles and mice, to the forests and developed areas which offer ideal areas to perch and watch before taking off in soaring, looping flight. As part of the courting ritual, male and female hawks perform a sky-high dance, circling and diving around each other. The female lays 2-3 eggs each breeding season and tends to the nestlings while the male takes responsibility for hunting and bringing back dinner.

If you’ve ever seen a beaver swimming while gnawing on branches or building up his lodge, you know it’s pretty special. Beavers intermittently set up shop downstream of the North Bridge and in the Mill Brook and Elm Brook areas… and they’re hard to miss when they’re here. The North American Beaver is the largest rodent throughout the US, weighing in between 35 and 80lbs in adulthood and measuring 2-3 feet in length, PLUS another foot and a half of tail! Beavers use that large flat tail to swim, balance and might slap it on the surface of the water to sound an alarm or scare you off. In addition to their tail, beavers also have other specially adapted features that make life in the water easier, including webbed feet and oil glands to keep their fur water resistant. When on land, beavers use their large front teeth, which grown throughout their lives, to bring down trees. They then build dams and lodges with smaller tree trunks and large branches. Beaver dams are incredibly important within many ecosystems… the resultant flooding of a river or stream creates wetlands; key habitat for many other species, including fish and migrating birds. Wetlands also improve water quality, enrich nutrient content in surrounding soil, reduce erosion and prevent significant amounts of sediment from flowing downstream.

Perhaps one of the cutest and most prolific mammals at Minute Man (we love to watch their antics on the many rock walls around the park), the Eastern Chipmunk is also an active environmental helper. These small brown rodents, marked with black and white stripes on their backs, feed on green, flowers, berries, and nuts… lots of nuts! Chipmunks will spread the seeds from flowers, berries and trees (nuts), which allows those species to propagate. Chipmunks are adaptable little creatures and will make their homes in underground burrows, wood and brush piles, and rock walls. Because they’re so small and find themselves near the bottom of the food chain, chipmunks also build extensive tunnel systems with multiple entrances and exits to facilitate a quick getaway when predators are around. If you’re lucky, you might spot some baby chippers in spring popping their heads out of a hole at the side of the trail or out of the rock walls at the North Bridge. Chipmunks mate twice a year producing 4-5 kits each time.

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, the Eastern Gray Squirrel calls eastern Massachusetts (and basically everywhere else in the US) home sweet home. Here at Minute Man, we love watching these amazing acrobats run, roll, and leap up to 10 feet from tree to tree. Their agility is due in part to their ability to climb nose down by turning their feet to face backwards, as well as a fluffy tail which is 50% of their total body length. Eastern Gray Squirrels are moderately sized rodents, weighing about a pound and measuring up to 18 inches in length. Squirrels maintain a healthy, varied diet including insects, birds, eggs, berries and nuts. Much like chipmunks, a squirrel’s preference for nuts means they contribute significantly to forest regeneration. Because Eastern Grays are active year-round (many squirrel species hibernate), they must store food for the lean times. An individual squirrel may cash hundreds or even thousands of nuts by burying them in the ground. But sometimes they just pretend to bury a nut to trick a nearby bird or squirrel. All those nuts and all that subterfuge means a squirrel might not remember the location of every cache, which allows those nuts to grow into beautiful trees. Squirrels, as you might have guessed, prefer to live in mixed forests, but they are highly adaptable and may thrive in most any environment. That adaptability is why squirrels have learned to live in human homes, as their natural forest habitats are destroyed by cities, towns and suburban sprawl. Of note, while the squirrels we see here are Eastern Grays, they do come in multiple color phases, including white and black. These variations are more common in urban and suburban areas.

The Little Brown Bat, so little, so brown, so unassuming… The truth is, these guys deserve a lot of respect. Have you ever taken the time to consider bats are the only mammal that can fly? Bats are also important parts of a forest ecosystem, serving as prey species for many predators, including owls, foxes and snakes. More importantly to us humans, Little Brown Bats eat a lot of insects, including mosquitoes. Each summer evening, using echolocation, a bat will eat half its body weight in bugs! A mother bat will consume its whole body weight worth of insects each night. August is mating season and pups are born in October. Baby bats grow rapidly and are able to fly just 3 weeks after being born. An adult Little Brown Bat weighs less than ½ ounce, but it’s wing spread is 8 to 11 inches. Little Browns, which may also be reddish or blond, are not territorial and live in large colonies of more than 150,000, though the average is just shy of 10,000. Unfortunately, the population of Little Brown Bats has declined, particularly in the eastern US, due in large part to a fungal infection called White Nose Syndrome. Pesticides, mining and deforestation are also impacting populations.

To learn more about the Little Brown Bat, check out this article from the NPS Integrated Resource Management Application: https://irma.nps.gov/Datastore/DownloadFile/629595

Not a rat. Again, the Muskrat would like you to know he is not a rat, but rather a member of the vole family. This sweet little marsh dweller must however, own up to being pretty stinky. The Muskrat got its moniker for having both a rat like tail and a strong, musky scent. While weighing in at only about 4 pounds and measuring a foot in length, Muskrats are sometimes mistaken for their larger cousin, the beaver, because they share similar habitats and also build lodges in wetlands. Here in the park, you may see Muskrats in the Concord River, Mill Brook and Elm Brook. If they see you and dive down, don’t expect to see them again or in the same spot. A Muskrat can stay underwater for up to 20 minutes and uses it’s partially webbed feet to swim at 3 miles per hour.

Celebrated in literature and folklore as a trickster archetype, the red fox may in fact be a smart and charming as its mythical counterpart, but nowhere near as troublesome. In fact, Foxes often get blamed for things they didn’t do. While these small canines, weighting 10 to 15 pounds, can and do live in and around suburban areas, they are shy and don’t often get near homes. That said, don’t invite them to the cookout. Clean the BBQ, bring in the dog food, and if you notice a fox frequenting the neighborhood, maybe bring in the bird feeder that’s attracting prey species like squirrels and other rodents. Foxes have great hearing and will likely hear a rodent moving below the snow or soil before they see it. Foxes prey on rodents, rabbits, and birds as well as fruit. Because of this diet, the Red fox makes its home in open areas on forest edges, wetlands and overgrown fields. You can spot a red fox in the fields or trails of Minute Man. You’ll recognize the bright rusty color with that characteristic white tail tip. But, fun fact, not all Red Foxes are red (are you sensing a theme here?), some will have a significant amount of grey or black fur. An animal displaying this color phase is called a cross fox and might look more like a gray fox, which we have in eastern Massachusetts, but you’ll know it’s a Red because it’ll still have that white tail tip.

A frequent visitor to the farm fields near Meriam’s corner and the open fields by the Minute Man Visitor Center, the White-Tailed Deer is probably the largest mammal you’ll spot in the park. Size varies widely for this species. A male can be up to 3 and a half feet tall and weigh as much as 300 pounds, though the largest recorded buck in North America was more than 500lbs! Females typically weigh 100 to 200 pounds. You can tell adult males from females because they will wear an antler crown much of the year. These antlers are shed and regrown annually, so it may be a bit tougher in late winter and early spring when the males don’t have their spikes. Interestingly, a very small percentage of female deer will also grow antlers. More iconic than the antlers though, is the deer’s long tail with bright white fur on its underside. You’ll see the flash of white as the deer flees danger (you). The tail is not so much a flag of surrender as it is an alert to other deer. The warning system, ability to move at high speed and great skill in hiding seem to work because while these deer are a prey species for predators like bears and wild cats and canines, as well as a game species for humans, the White Tail is the oldest deer species, predating the last ice age. Do help them survive into future epocs by observing speed limits on roads surrounding the park, and keep in mind that where you see one deer, you’re likely to see more.

Meet some of the common mammals seen in Minute Man National Historical Park

O, the Opossum! A creature that doesn’t get nearly the love and respect it deserves. There also isn’t enough page space to give this critter the credit it deserves here, so make sure you pop Opossum into your search engine when you are in need of a little awe and inspiration. And yes, it’s Opossum- not Possum- a possum is a totally different animal that lives in Australia. The Virginia Opossum you might spy along the battle road trail is distinguishable by its milky white fur, round, black ears, and pink nose, feet and tail. Now, time for the fun facts! Opossums have an opposable thumb and prehensile tail making them adept climbers, though they don’t really like to climb. Opossums are solitary, nocturnal, slow movers who spend their time eating bugs, snails and slugs. One of the Opossum’s favorite snacks is the tick. Some scientists estimate a single Opossum will consume upwards of 5,000 ticks in one season. Despite that icky diet, the Opossum has NO body odor! None! This is likely due to the fact that they lick themselves constantly to help regulate temperature. Cooler than that (see what we did there?), the Opossum has more teeth than any other land mammal in North America- they have 50 chompers! An opossum will bare those 50 sharp teeth and hiss when threatened, but they are shy and will rarely if ever actually bite out of fear. If you’re not scared and don’t move away, an Opossum may play dead (playing possum), but sadly this is not a clever defense mechanism, it’s an involuntary stress response. This catatonic state can last minutes or hours and an Opossum will likely drool and defecate involuntarily while “out”. This does cause predators to think they are dead and rotten and thus leave them alone. Stress passing out aside, Opossums are pretty smart. This species is second only to humans when it comes to remembering where food is, and as pets they can learn their names, use a litter box, snuggle and learn the routines of their owners. Finally, and most impressively we come to the reproduction of Opossums. A female will have two litters of 8 to 12 babies each year. Being marsupials, the mother will keep the babes in her pouch for 2 months then carry them on her back for another month or so. Amazingly, she’ll do so on her own as the male Opossum leaves after mating. Remember that recommendation to visit a search engine? You have to read more about the harrowing first months for baby opossums! All this and Opossums live a short life, just 1 to 2 years.

Learn more about natural resources at Minute Man by visiting the Northeast Temperate Inventory & Monitoring website.

Minute Man is a designated place with multiple projects on iNaturalist, an on-line citizen science database. Help the park track all wild species (mammals, bird, insects, plants, etc.) and behavior by adding your observations to iNaturalist whenever you visit.

To learn more about non-NPS citizen science initiatives, check out this article from the National Park Service.

Meet some of the common birds seen in Minute Man National Historical Park

If you stop by the North Bridge early in the morning, before the crowds and noise arrive, you are likely to encounter a resident group of Rock Pigeons standing sentinel on the rails. Some of our rangers like to believe these members of the dove family are keeping watch over the hallowed grounds before we arrive with our flat hats and badges. Probably not true, but it could be. Pigeons are one of the smartest bird species and have been trained to take on many complex tasks including carrying messages, homing, and racing. One research study even showed pigeons are one of the few birds that can recognize itself in a mirror (you’ll never see one of these guys attacking its reflection in your kitchen window… sorry cardinal). Pigeons mate for life and maintain a cooperative partnership. The female will build the nest with materials supplied by the male and both take turns feeding the young, called squeakers or squabs. While pigeons in urban and suburban areas will eat almost anything, including discarded human junk food, they thrive best on a diet of acorns, worms and seeds.

It’s a pretty ominous name for such a cute little bird, but don’t worry, the Killdeer did not come by its name by taking down ungulates. This member of the plover family was named for its unique call, “kill-deer, kill-deer, kill-deer.” What’s more, the Killdeer is much more of a defensive player, pretending to have a broken wing to distract predators from its nest. Killdeer nest on the ground in open areas such as farm fields, lawns, airport runways, coastal mudflats and sports fields. These adaptable birds have a wide-ranging diet that includes insects, grubs and snails. Be kind and watch out for these long-legged shorebirds when you see them in the park; while their numbers are currently stable in Massachusetts there have been steep declines in population around many urban areas of the country.

Despite what we were taught by several childhood princess movies, we here at Minute Man have never convinced an Eastern Bluebird to help us with chores at the Hartwell Tavern. That said, their sweet musical songs do brighten ones mood when taking on some of the less glamorous tasks of rangering. These little thrushes do live in Massachusetts throughout the year, though they are a rare sight in winter; many choosing to migrate south for the leaner months. Bluebirds prefer more open landscapes with just a few trees, making the pastoral farmland of Middlesex County a perfect place to call home. Their population has been boosted in the last 50 years as many people, concerned with the birds declining numbers in the early 20th century, started putting up bluebird houses in their yards. Bluebirds who don’t take up residence in a house, will nest in hollow trees or cavities left by other species like woodpeckers. Eastern Bluebirds breed 2-3 times a year, laying 4-5 eggs each time. Both parents feed the nestlings.

The Downy may be the smallest woodpecker in Massachusetts, but this mighty little bird is highly adaptable and thriving across the state. Named for the light fluffy feathers on its back, super industrious, “Downies” spend a lot of time grasping the branches and trunks of trees with their 3 toes searching out yummy insects. While Downy woodpeckers will live in just about any forested area, they prefer making their nests in deciduous trees. In fact, next time you walk down the Battle Road trail and hear that signature woodpecker drumbeat, know that’s probably what the bird is doing; it can take a Downy woodpecker up to 3 weeks to carve out a nesting cavity. Fun fact, Downy Woodpeckers have special feathers on their beak that help keep bits of bark and wood out of their airway while they hammer away. Once the nest is built, the female will lay 4-5 eggs.

Minute Man is also a birding hotspot in the eBird on-line database. Help the park track bird populations and behavior by adding your obsevations to eBird whenever you visit.

Learn more about natural resources at Minute Man by visiting the Northeast Temperate Inventory & Monitoring website .

You can also help the Natural Resources team at Minute Man study our wildlife populations by participating in a number of non-NPS citizen science initiatives. Read more about them in this article from the National Park Service.