Lexington Battle Green

Lexington Green
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
The Revolutionary Monument, 1799
Location:	Massachusetts Avenue and Harrington Road, Lexington, Massachusetts
Coordinates:	42°26′58″N 71°13′53″W
Built:	1711
Governing body:	Local
NRHP Reference#:	66000767
Significant dates
Added to NRHP:	October 15, 1966
Designated NHL:	January 20, 1961

The Lexington Battle Green, properly known as Lexington Common, is the site of the opening shots of the American Revolution in 1775 during the Battle of Lexington. The Common had been purchased by subscription of some of the town's leading citizens in 1711. In 1775 local militiamen emerged from Buckman Tavern adjacent to the common and formed two rows on the common to oppose British forces.The militiamen suffered the first casualties of the American Revolution when the British troops opened fire. The Battle Green is located at the center of Lexington, Massachusetts, and serves as the main staging area for the annual reenactment of the Battle of Lexington and Concord. A statue representing Captain John Parker, the leader of the Lexington minutemen, stands at the eastern edge of the Common. It was erected in 1900 at the bequest of Francis Brown Hayes, and was sculpted by well-known Massachusetts artist Henry Hudson Kitson.

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  The Green in modern times

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  Inscription on the Revolutionary monument

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  Lexington Minutemen relief by Bashka Paeff

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  The Minuteman Statue, 1900

External links

• Battle Green
• Aerial View of Battle Green