The bloodiest battle on April 19, 1775

If you are into this, take a long walk and read all the markers in Arlington. I did that when I lived there and learned that my neighborhood had been a brutal battle zone. Some of the stories are amazing.

Like the one that my Dad called the "Tough Old Son of a Bitch" Monument in front of that house/museum at Pleasant St. and Mass Ave. Or the many describing skirmishes along Mass Ave.

The British, on a day that started like this morning did and then hit the mid-70s F, marched in leather boots and wool coats with heavy gear through the marshes, through the towns, to a skirmish in Lexington and up to Concord (with reinforcements). They were then chased back to Boston under fire. They got fed up with the sniper fire in Arlington and stopped to commit atrocities and burn houses. Seeing the smoke from those houses, Colonial regiments from the North went double time into Arlington and cut the retreat off, leading to mayhem.

The effects of two British soldiers killed that day in "Menotomy" were found in a cornerstone when the old UU Church burned down and are now on display.

Makes 26 miles in good footwear with regular hydration stops seem rather civilized.