Independence Quest—Letter 4

🎥 Activity Videos

If you need a little help with the projects from the activity sheet, you've come to the right place. Follow along with the tutorials to see how they're done.
💬 Family Chat

What did you learn from the letter? What would you have done in the same situation? Think about the discussion prompt and talk about it with your family.
🗽 Quotes of Liberty

Each letter's activity sheet spotlights two 'Heroes of Liberty'. Take a moment to read some of their own words and think about what they meant then and now.
📝 The Gauntlet

Ready to test your knowledge? Take this ten-question quiz to see how much you know about the topics discussed in this letter's activity page.
🤔 Fun Facts

Things have changed a lot in the last 250 years. Check out some interesting facts about life in the American colonies around 1775.
🔍 More to Explore

Ready to learn more? Check out these external resources to discover more information, inspiration, ideas, and instructions.

★ Activity Videos ★

Making Cornmeal Mush

Make Cornmeal Mush with Eliza from the Hartwell Boarding House (by StarSpangledLetters)

The Pigpen Cipher

Learn how to send coded messages with the pigpen cipher (by StarSpangledLetters)

Forgotten Skills: Letter Folding

Write and fold a letter as they would have in colonial times. (by StarSpangledLetters)

Hands-On History: Setting Type

The work of a colonial printer was not easy. Try this exercise to see if you have what it takes. (by StarSpangledLetters)

★ Family Chat ★

PROMPT

Discussion Prompt:

Courage, Consequences, and the First Shot

On April 19, 1775, ordinary people had to decide whether to stay home and remain safe or rush out to defend what they believed was right—even though it could lead to war.

Discuss together: If you had been a Minuteman, would you have answered the call right away, or hesitated because of the danger?

What would help you make such a big decision?

Talk about how courage often involves uncertainty, and how our choices can affect not just ourselves, but our families, communities, and even history.

★ Quotes of Liberty ★

“I alarmed almost every house, till I got to Lexington.”

~Paul Revere (1735-1818)

"If the Sons (so degenerate) the Blessing despise, Let the Daughters of Liberty, nobly arise"

~Hannah Griffitts (1727-1817)
(From "The Female Patriots")

★ The Gauntlet ★

Test Your Knowledge

Question 1 of 10

What Was Paul Revere's profession?

Blacksmith

Silversmith

Gunsmith

Locksmith

How did Hannah Griffitts speak out against unfair British taxes?

By organizing protests

By running for political office

By writing poetry

By speaking before Parliament

What is the phrase used to describe the first gunfire of the American Revolution?

The shot heard 'round the world

The loud boom

The Massachusetts miracle

The day the music died

What was the name given to patriots who were always prepared to defend their towns—even on short notice?

Lightning Lads

Minutemen

Fast Fellows

Jiffy Gents

What was placed in the steeple of the Old North Church to signal how the British troops were leaving Boston (one if by land and two if by sea)?

Flags

Doves

Bells

Lanterns

On the morning of April 19, 1775, British troops and colonial militiamen first exchanged gunfire in which town?

Boston

Salem

Lexington

Concord

Where did the British army march after Lexington?

Boston

Salem

London

Concord

What was another name for British troops?

Regulars

Usuals

Typicals

Ordinaries

What were the British troops looking for in Lexington and Concord?

Untaxed tea

A hidden printshop and printing press

Stolen army horses

Hidden weapons and rebel leaders

Which of the following individuals did NOT ride through the countryside to warn the colonists that the British were coming?

Paul Revere

Henry Longfellow

William Dawes

Samuel Prescott

0/10

You completed the quiz!

★ Fun Facts ★

1 5

★ More to Explore ★

Road to Liberty: Battles of Lexington and Concord

See historical accounts of the Battles of Lexington and Concord. (by PragerU)

Paul Revere and the American Revolution - Fast Facts | History

Learn about Paul Revere. (by HISTORY)

Poetry Introduction

Learn some elements of poetry. (by Andie Worsley)

Minutemen

Find out what made Minutemen different. (by Daily Dose Documentary)

Cart

The Postscript

🎥 Activity Videos

💬 Family Chat

🗽 Quotes of Liberty

📝 The Gauntlet

🤔 Fun Facts

🔍 More to Explore

Making Cornmeal Mush

The Pigpen Cipher

Forgotten Skills: Letter Folding

Hands-On History: Setting Type

Courage, Consequences, and the First Shot

“I alarmed almost every house, till I got to Lexington.”

"If the Sons (so degenerate) the Blessing despise, Let the Daughters of Liberty, nobly arise"

Test Your Knowledge

Although Paul Revere is famous for warning the countryside, he was captured by British officers before reaching Concord.

At Lexington Green, Captain John Parker told his militia: “Stand your ground. Don’t fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here.”

At Concord’s North Bridge, colonial militia forced British troops to retreat.

When word spread that British soldiers were coming, many women in Concord quickly hid muskets and supplies—even burying them in fields or concealing them inside homes.

Fighting didn’t stop at Concord. As British troops retreated to Boston, thousands of colonial militia surrounded and fired upon them from behind trees, stone walls, and houses.

Road to Liberty: Battles of Lexington and Concord

Paul Revere and the American Revolution - Fast Facts | History

Poetry Introduction

Minutemen

Quick shop