Minute Man National Historical Park is pleased to announce that the North Bridge Restoration Project is complete! This most hallowed ground is once again open to visitors. You may now freely access the North Bridge and monuments, and enjoy a ¼ mile walk through a restored historic landscape from the North Bridge to the North Bridge Visitor Center.

 The project goals were as follows:

 ·        Rehabilitate historic structures and landscapes essential for understanding the events of April 19, 1775

 ·        Upgrade interpretive elements that explain the opening battle of the American Revolution

 ·        Enhance visitor safety  by repairing deteriorating structures, furnishings, crosswalks, pathways and amphitheaters

 ·        Control non-native, exotic plants that have invaded the area

 ·        Restore historic agricultural fields between the North Bridge Visitor Center and the North Bridge/Concord River

These goals have been successfully met. As a result, this icon of American history now fully reflects the reverence placed upon it by free peoples around the world.

North Bridge Restoration Project Photo Gallery

A Brief History of Concord's North Bridge

There have been many changes to this hallowed site throughout history. The bridge whose timbers reverberated with the famous "shot heard 'round the world" was constructed in 1760; one of a series of bridges that occupied the site since the 1630's. (The first documented bridge was built ca. 1654 though it is widely held that a bridge was located at, or near, the present site shortly after 1635, the year of incorporation of the Town of Concord.) The bridge of 1760 was replaced in 1788 only to be dismantled in 1793 when the river crossing was moved upstream. From 1793 to 1874 no bridge existed at this historic site.

In an effort to create a sturdier bridge, engineers and architects designed the next bridge in concrete using as their model the original drawings by Amos Doolittle prepared shortly after the battle in 1775. Nature once again proved more powerful and in 1955, damage from Hurricane Diane left the bridge beyond repair. The current bridge, newly restored, was built in 1956 by the State of Massachusetts.

Attractions at the North Bridge Area

Grave of British Soldiers: A grave on the Monument St. side of the North Bridge marks the final resting place of two of the three British soldiers who died as a result of the North Bridge fight. In 1910, the town placed a large slate on the site engraved with the last quatrain of James Russell Lowell’s 1849 poem “Lines.”

They  came three thousand miles and died,

To keep the past upon its throne.

Unheard beyond the ocean tide,

Their English mother made her moan.

The 1836 Monument: This was the first monument placed at the site of the North Bridge to commemorate the battle that occurred here on April 19, 1775. Though it was constructed in 1836, it wasn’t dedicated until July 4^th, 1837. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s famous “Concord Hymn” was first sung at the dedication ceremony. The monument was placed on the “British side” of the Concord river (meaning the side that the British stood on during the brief battle) because at the time there was no bridge at the old site. As the centennial approached, many townsfolk began to agitate and call for a new bridge to be built and a suitable monument to be placed on the “American side.”

 The Minute Man Statue: This famous statue by artist Daniel Chester French, among whose later works include the seated Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.,was dedicated on April 19, 1875 as part of the Centennial celebrations. It was funded by donations made by patriotic citizens of Concord, particularly Ebenezer Hubbard who donated $600.00 for the building of a bridge on the site of the old “battle” bridge. Hubbard also bequeathed to the town an additional $1000.00 towards the building of a monument “on the spot where the Americans fell.” The statue was cast in bronze from ten condemned cannon supplied by the United States Congress.

 The Groton Road: The sandy trail that now leads from the North Bridge to North Bridge Visitor Center approximates the alignment of the Groton Road. This old colonial road was one of the earliest built in Concord in the mid - 1600’s.  It provided access to Concord Center for residents who lived across the river. It also served as a vital link to the nearby towns of Acton and Groton then continuing on to the north and west. On April 19, 1775, the minute men marched on this road as they advanced toward the North Bridge, held by British soldiers.

 North Bridge Visitor Center: Here you will find exhibits and a bookstore. The exhibits include life-size mannequins of a British soldier and a Colonial militia man, and also a diorama of Concord center in 1775 and the North Bridge complete with troop positions and other landmarks. Water fountain and restrooms.

 “The Hancock” Cannon: Also at North Bridge Visitor Center you can see a rare Revolutionary War cannon, “The Hancock.” According to tradition, Patriots stole this cannon from a gun house on Boston Common that was under guard by British soldiers, and then smuggled it out to Concord.

 The Muster Field: Upon this field, across Liberty St. from the North Bridge Visitor Center, colonial militia officers held the first council of war of the Revolution. It was here that they decided to march their companies down the Groton Road to the North Bridge, held by British soldiers. The field, long overgrown, has now been cleared and is a powerful reminder of the many hard choices made that day.