“Lafayette ,
we are here.” Thus ended a speech by Charles E. Stanton, Lieutenant Colonel on
the staff of General John J. Pershing. The event was a visit to Lafayette ’s tomb, on July 4, 1917, just three months after
the United States has joined
the war against Germany
and its allies. The speech acknowledged France ’s support for the American
Revolutionary War. In context: “America
has joined forces with the allied powers, and what we have of blood and
treasure are yours. Therefore it is that with loving pride we drape the colors
in tribute of respect to this citizen of your great republic. And here and now,
in the presence of the illustrious dead, we pledge our hearts and our honor in
carrying this war to a successful issue. Lafayette ,
we are here!”
Stanton could say "Lafayette "
in the same way other political and military stars need only one name: Washington,
Lincoln, Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin, Mao. By his full name and title, Marie-Joseph
Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier (Marquis de Lafayette) was born in 1757 into a
noble French family with a LONG history of military service. Nearly 350 years
before his arrival in the at-war Colonies his ancestor Gilbert de Lafayette III
had been a companion-at-arms with Joan of Arc's army, fighting against English
invaders. And nearly 50 years after Lafayette
first arrived on our shores to fight in the Revolutionary War, he returned to
the United States and
visited, briefly, Stow , MA .
Stanton could say "
Portrait of Marquis de Lafayette, Lieutenant
General, French Army, 1791 (age 34 years) |
President James Monroe and Congress invited Lafayette
to visit the United States
in 1824-25 celebrate the nation's upcoming 50th anniversary. Lafayette was 66 at the
time. His intended four month tour of the original 13 states became a thirteen
month, 6,000 mile tour of 24 states, traveling by horseback, carriage, canal
barge and steamboat. And this brings us to the point of our local interest. On
September 2, 1824, Lafayette and his entourage left Boston
via carriage to events scheduled in Lexington
and Concord . Lexington claimed it was
where the war started. A banner read “The birthplace of American liberty.” Concord counter-claimed
it was where the colonists first fired at the British. When Lafayette
visited North Bridge
in Concord ,
Judge Samuel Hoar told him that he was looking at the spot where “the first
forcible resistance was made.”
1824 portrait by Ary Scheffer |
If Lafayette's coach traveled west from Concord, stopping at
Stow along the way, there is only one logical route for him to have taken -
Laws Brook Road to School Street to Parker Road to Concord Street to Summer
Street - and hence to Stow Lower Village.
From the written records it does not appear that Stow was a planned stop,
perhaps only a place to rest the horses and let the travelers stretch their
legs, but there ended up being a reception of sorts. According to Crowell’s
history of Stow (1933), Lafayette and his
entourage reached the Stow
common [next to Route 117 east of Shaw’s shopping plaza] after sunset and
stayed for almost an hour. They were met by a military company led by Captain
Pliny Wetherbee and feted at the Gardner Inn. The Honorable Rufus Hosmer
coordinated the event. There were refreshments, the Marquis received a bouquet
of flowers, and then departed into the darkness, miles to go before reaching
the residence of Sampson V.S. Wilder, in Bolton ,
for a sumptuous feast and overnight stay. The house still stands, on Wilder Road.
Stow Minutemen Company, 2011 (Click on photo to enlarge) |
The above-described route across Stow ( parts which did not become Maynard until 1871), would have been the reverse of
much of the line of march of the Stow Minutemen on the morning of April 19,
1775, on their way to Concord .
The Stow Minutemen Company re-enacts the march every Patriot's Day. New
recruits welcome!
RESOURCES
Stanton speech: http://sites.lafayette.edu/lafayettewwi/pershing-at-picpus/gilmer/
The Schiller Institute: http://www.schillerinstitute.org/educ/hist/lafayette.html
Cornell University: http://rmc.library.cornell.edu/lafayette/exhibition/english/tour/
http://www.larouchepub.com/eiw/public/2007/eirv34n46-20071123/54-63_46.pdf
Looking forward to bicentennial of Lafayette's tour in 2024-2025
ReplyDelete