Park Preps for 250th Anniversary of the Battle of Lexington and Concord

This upcoming Patriots’ Day weekend will see the Minute Man National Historical Park host Battle Road 250 with hundreds of Revolutionary War reenactors.

Honoring the day-long battles fought at Lexington and Concord and the roads around the two Massachusetts towns, the park says that over 750 reenactors will be on hand for the anniversary of the beginning of America's War for Independence.

"On April 19, 1775, General Gage sent 800 British soldiers to the town of Concord to seize and destroy a large colonial stockpile of arms, ammunition, and provisions," notes the park. "The move triggered a massive response from militia companies across New England and led to the first battle of the American Revolution."

While several events are planned around the anniversary, it is the fast-paced Battle Road Tactical Demonstration that will draw the crowds. Told from both sides, that of the rapidly mobilized Colonial Minutemen and militia and the British Regulars – the hated "Lobsterbacks" – those in attendance will be able to drink in the sound of musketry and the thrill of historical interpretations on the hallowed grounds that helped establish Liberty.

The park's social media accounts have been filled in recent days with images of past Battle Road demonstrations as well as recreated militia and Redcoats drilling and training in the use of the 1764 manual of arms.