Sunday, October 28, 2007 The Legend of Paul Revere "Listen my
children and you shall hear Of the midnight ride of Paul
Revere." These opening lines to Henry Longfellow's epic poem
"Paul Revere's Ride" have been recited in classrooms across this
country. In fact, most people only know of Paul Revere thanks to
Longfellow’s 1860 poem (almost 100 years after the actual
event). Within the historical community, Reveres infamous ride
has been scrutinized for its embellished nature. As we know,
much of Paul Revere's "ride" was quite different from
Longfellow's dramatic portrayal. First off, we can all rest
assured that Paul Revere never shouted, "the British are
coming." To have done so would have destroyed the secrecy that
was needed for the mission. We can also be certain that Paul
Revere was not alone on April 18, 1775. After receiving his
initial instructions from Dr. Joseph Warren to warn John Hancock
and Samuel Adams of the impending doom, perhaps as many as fifty
other riders were caught up in the excitement o