Hancock-Clarke House, Lexington, Mass

Last crawled date: 1 year, 7 months ago

The Hancock-Clarke House, built in 1737, was the home of the Reverend John Hancock and the Reverend Jonas Clarke - two ministers who served the spiritual and secular needs of Lexington for 105 years. The Reverend Hancock’s grandson John, a frequent visitor to this house, was the first signer of the Declaration of Independence and the first Governor of Massachusetts. On the evening of April 18, 1775, John Hancock and Samuel Adams, prominent leaders in the colonial cause, were guests of the Reverend Jonas Clarke in the parsonage. Fearing that they might be captured by the British, Dr Joseph Warren of Boston sent William Dawes and Paul Revere to Lexington with news of the advancing British troops. Arriving separately, they stopped to warn Hancock and Adams, then set off for Concord. In 1896, when the building faced demolition, the Lexington Historical Society acquired it and moved it from across the street to its present location. Restored to its 18th-century appearance and well maintained, the Hancock-Clarke House is open to the public. It is the second building in America to be saved by historic preservation - Mount Vernon was the first. #American_History #American_Revolution #Anne_Grady #Freedom_Trail #historic_presevation #Lexington_Historical_Society #Massachusetts #Minutemen #Paul_Revere #US_History_Deane_Rykerson