18/04/2025
Two Lights for Tomorrow is a nationwide initiative kicking off the celebration of the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding.
On the evening of April 18, 1775, Paul Revere was tasked with riding to Lexington to alert the Sons of Liberty that British soldiers were marching into the countryside northwest of the town with orders to arrest Samuel Adams and John Hancock, two leaders of the Sons of Liberty, who were staying at a house in Lexington. The British then planned to continue to Concord and destroy military stores of gunpowder, ammunition, and cannons that were stockpiled there.
The Sons of Liberty arranged a signal. Two lanterns hung at the Old North Church told Revere that British troops planned to row “by sea” across the Charles River to Cambridge rather than march “by land” out of Boston
The next day, April 19, British regulars clashed with local American militiamen, including the Minutemen, in Lexington and Concord, marking the beginning of the American Revolution.
Over the next eight years, approximately 375,000 Americans fought for independence. An estimated 20,000 Americans were held as prisoners of war, and 8,500 died in captivity.
Today, visitor centers, cultural and historical community sites, and government buildings across the nation will display two lights to commemorate the beginning of our constant endeavor as a nation to work together for a better tomorrow.
Image Description: Two lanterns shine over the Historic Prison Site at Andersonville National Historic Site.
