By Sonya Mellnick, Photography by Jesse Dahlberg
The Wright Tavern is an unassuming red building in the center of Concord. I’ve walked, driven, and seen this building probably over 100 times, yet I have never gone inside. But, as I was offered a private tour of the Tavern by the excellent Mrs Meyer. for the Concord250th celebration, I couldn’t say no. Sooner than later, I found myself and my team (Jesse Dahlberg and Minjung Kim, respectively) sitting in the Wright Tavern with Jim Sherblom, author and historian.
Meyer
-The Bars-
As expected, the Wright Tavern is most famous for the April 19th Lexington and Concord Battle, but the Tavern had been harboring revolutionary air for a long time. Taverns were the places where the Revolution started. Like how you might share your frustrations with your friend in the bar, taverns were where men shared their news and the first revolutionary ideas. In this way, men made real dealmaking in taverns because they allowed men to get together and act on their views without formal convention. As the Tavern grew as a hub for revolutionary ideas, it grew into a real meetinghouse, Jim says, leading me into the tavern meeting room. He explains how John Adams and John Hancock had spoken about creating a country in this room and entered through the front door, which is still intact today with its matching pewter key after over 100 years. It was quite an enlightening experience, standing in the same place where a country was born 250 years ago. The Concord government soon turned the Wright Tavern into Minuteman Headquarters. As Minuteman headquarters, this directly tied the Wright Tavern to rebel treason against the British and made the first time in the colonies an army had reported to a civilian presidency rather than a king. These ideals followed suit and crashed down on April 19th, 1775.
Those original ideas ultimately led to a fully fledged war on April 19th, 1775. The army militias had already been warned of the British arrival by Samuel Prescott so that young men would be out on the field throughout the day. That means that the Wright Tavern would have been full of women, elderly, and children. They would have been watching out the same window that looks out to the rotary, several hundred British Troops storming the town. It wouldn’t be long until they came to the Wright Tavern, looking for military supplies. They had to think quickly about where to hide supplies in the Tavern, using soap barrels, crates, and other things to hide vital artillery from the British Troops. Hannah Barnes, who was in the Tavern on that fateful day, hid supplies in a crate and simply stopped officers from searching it by implying her ‘lady things’ were there. The crate and the ceiling beams from 1775 are still on display in the Wright Tavern to see for yourself. The Tavern remained influential throughout the rest of the 19th. Despite materials not being compromised, the Tavern fell to British Troops by afternoon. However, as the militiamen forced the British to retreat to Boston hastily, the Tavern regained control of the Minuteman. By the night’s end, Paul Revere rode out on his horse from the Tavern on the road to Philadelphia to inform the Continental Congress the colonies were now at war. There would be no turning back.
-The Tea Rooms-
Just as the Revolutionary movement began in taverns, the Wright Tavern also houses a tea room, where the suffragette movement had started. Women were initially not allowed to eat in restaurants alone, so this resulted in women meeting together in their own homes rather than in taverns. Similarly to taverns, this garnered more women together sharing their views, growing the size of these meetings. From this, tea rooms are born. Women, together agreeing with their opinions and frustrations with their lack of rights, began formulating actions to start the suffrage movement. The Wright Tavern has a bar and tea room, making it extraordinary in not just one front of history. As Jim said, “The Revolution started in bars, and the Suffrage movement started in Tea Rooms.” However, tea Rooms did not just play a role in the suffrage movement. They also played a pivotal role in the abolitionist movement, and so did the Wright Tavern.
Many local governments had banned abolitionism from being spoken about publicly throughout the years leading up to the Civil War. This ban had initially excluded tea rooms because they were considered private operations. As such, tea rooms quickly became hubs for abolitionists to congregate. Learning of this, city governments quickly started including Tea Rooms in their bans, including Concord. But that didn’t stop Concord citizens from taking action. While living at Walden Pond, Henry David Thoreau invited quite a famous abolitionist to speak in the outdoor amphitheater after Tea Rooms were banned. That abolitionist was Frederick Douglass. Douglass went on to talk at Walden and the parish church, directly across the street from Wright Tavern. The Wright Tavern itself also played a role in history. In 1863, the Tavern became a kindergarten, and the school teacher got every child to sign a petition to free all enslaved children and send it to President Lincoln, which garnered a written response from the man himself.
-The Wright Tavern-
The Wright Tavern has proved itself never to cease being amazingly historical throughout its years, showing that the Wright Tavern has always been about defending liberties, whatever they may be. This information was given to me by the excellent staff at the Wright Tavern, notably my tour guide, Jim Sherblom. If you’d like to learn more little stories about Concord, I strongly recommend Sherblom’s book Stories of Concord, Massachusetts, which will be on sale at the Wright Tavern, Concord Bookshop, and Debra’s Natural Gourmet. The Wright Tavern will hold tours on April 18th and 19th, but they will only take 100 people at a time, so make plans now!
Special thanks to Jim Sherblom, who gave me such an informational tour; my co-head Jesse Dahlberg, who photographed images in this article; Minjung Kim, my advisor who helped make this tour possible; and finally, Polly Meyer, who contacted Mr.Sherblom and created this opportunity for me and my team
