On April 19th, Concord celebrated the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution’s start with the Concord250 Patriots’ Day Parade. Reporting live from the parade for The Concord Bridge newspaper, I witnessed and documented this historic event firsthand. From interviewing local teachers marching in the parade to capturing the enthusiastic reactions of fellow Concord-Carlisle High School students and residents lining the streets, this account offers a Concord perspective on the sights, sounds, and sense of community that defined this historic milestone.
The parade was set to begin at 8:30 AM, but I woke up extra early at 6:30 AM (yes, the same time I wake up for school) to be prepared for a longer-than-usual route to Concord, as I knew many roads in the center would be blocked off.
At around 7:10 AM, I left the house with my mom. Instead of taking our usual route from Carlisle to Concord, we had to loop all the way to Bedford due to road closures in Carlisle. I thought that as long as we followed Google Maps, we would be able to avoid all the closed roads and arrive in Concord smoothly. However, when we got to Bedford, the road we needed to travel on to get to Concord was also blocked off. I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to make it to the parade because of all the traffic disruptions. However, luckily, after showing officers my media pass, my mom was allowed to drive me to Concord. I got out of the car at the Concord Museum at around 8 AM, and walked to the tennis courts at Emerson Field, where marchers were forming the parade.
There, after meeting with a photographer from the Concord Bridge, I got the opportunity to interview three local teachers who teach at Thoreau Elementary School: Roseanne Swain, Johanna Ellis, and Laurel Jackson. Roseanne Swain was a fifer—someone who plays the fife, a flute-like instrument typically associated with military bands—with the musicians as part of the Concord Minutemen. The original Concord Minutemen were the citizen militia for the town of Concord. 250 years ago, they led the march to the North Bridge, where “the shot heard ’round the world” occurred, marking the beginning of the Revolution. Swain expressed her excitement for the parade, saying, “I think that’s wonderful, just seeing the people, like, bringing history alive.” Laurel Jackson agreed, proud to be “here to represent Concord.”
Johanna Ellis, a kindergarten teacher, carried the guidon for the Concord unit, the flag identifying the unit’s military designation. This was not her first time participating in a Concord historical celebration: She was at the 200th anniversary in 1975, when she was in kindergarten herself. She hoped that Concord250 would “spark an interest where… someone decides to be like, oh, I want to learn more about that!”
At 8:30 AM, the parade began. At the front was the Concord Minuteman Fife and Drum Corps, playing “Welcome Here Again” as they marched from Emerson Field through Concord Center. As a member of the media, I took plenty of photos and videos and sent them through text to the Managing Editor at the Concord Bridge. Even though the cell service in Concord wasn’t great (it never is), my videos still sent over. On my phone, I kept the Concord Bridge’s live reporting page on Concord250 open. It was exciting to see all the live updates from different areas of Concord, including Concord Center (where I was), the North Bridge, and Minute Man National Historical Park. My favorite part of the parade was seeing CCHS’ cheerleading team and marching band walk by, playing music.
After the parade marched past Concord Center, I talked to fellow CCHS students, Marie Adams and El Whalen. El shared that since she grew up in Concord, she had gone to all the parades, calling them “a family tradition”. As a “really big history buff,” Marie became interested in attending Concord250 after El told her about it: “So I was like, you know what? I’ve never been here and seen it before. I mean, obviously I’m a very big history person, but I wanted to see it in person.” Both agreed that their favorite part of the parade was the University of Amherst band, saying, “that was amazing.” Marie added, “All the music was fantastic. That was probably my favorite part here.”
The parade continued onto the North Bridge, where U.S. Representative Lori Trahan and Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey delivered speeches. However, I stayed at Concord Center, prepared for the parade to circle back.
Near the Colonial Inn, I got the chance to speak with Kathleen Large, a local Concord resident. Dressed in patriotic flair, her cheerful attitude certainly masked her reservations about coming to Concord250. “I was shamed into coming by my lovely friends and family,” she admitted with a grin. “I didn’t get shamed enough into getting here by 6 o’clock to see the salute, but it’s been lovely.” In regards to the crowd, she was happy that “It’s not so crowded that you can’t breathe. But it’s certainly a lot of energy and a lot of people here. It’s lovely.” She was excited to see the parade, explaining, “We are here to catch it on the way back from the North Bridge.” She told me about an early stop at Verrill Farm, a beloved local farm. “They had a little booth in the parking lot, selling lovely tie-dye T-shirts, special commemorative ones. So yes, we bought a couple of them.”
As more people gathered around Monument Square awaiting the parade’s return, I met Sam Bird, a friendly local whose home sat right along the heart of the action. He chuckled and said, “It [Concord250] came to us. We didn’t come to it.” When asked about his favorite part of the day, he didn’t hesitate. “Oh boy, it has to be the parade. The parade was great this year; bigger than in the past years. A good mix of floats and people was represented. It was great.” At the parade, he especially enjoyed seeing “the people from Minuteman Arc and others you don’t often see, out waving to everybody.”
Recognizing that not everyone could attend in person, the community offered several ways to experience the day’s events remotely. The Concord Bridge provided live coverage, the Minuteman Media Network broadcast select events, and the CCHS radio station, WIQH, offered a live broadcast from Monument Square. After the parade ended, I stumbled across the CCHS WIQH team near the town hall. “I just thought it was really interesting,” Vail Henry-Hanson ‘25 reflected. “It’s the first time we’ve done something like this, where we’re covering a parade, and I think it was sort of a learning experience, but it was really, really fun. It’s fun to be part of the community and to be involved with the parade.” Claire Roeser ‘26 shared, “It was really hectic, but honestly, it’s a really fun time. It’s nice to see the community show up for each other. Overall, a really positive experience, and I loved the people I was doing it with.”
