#Revere July 2

by Coach4aday · July 2, 2026

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July 2026 several of us are going to take on the 30-Day America at 250 Coach4aday Challenge. Each day we share something about America’s unique and quirky history. It can be about a place, an event, or person. Today let’s look at what really happened on Paul REVERE Midnight Ride.

Was fortunate to discover an article written by Michael Natale and Tyler Piccotti. The title was The True Story of Paul Revere’s Ride. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem “The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere“ that I had to learn in grade school might not just be 100% accurate.

Day 2-Paul Revere’s Ride

Some historical context helps separate the poem from the actual events. Most importantly, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote Paul Revere’s Ride 86 years after the events of April 18, 1775. As storytellers and filmmakers often do, Longfellow took creative liberties to make the story more dramatic, memorable, and inspiring than the historical record alone.

Here are some key takeaways on what the article by Natale and Piccotti state the poem doesn’t tell us.

Revere was not the only rider.
The poem portrays Paul Revere as a lone hero racing through the countryside. In reality, Dr. Joseph Warren also dispatched William Dawes, and later Samuel Prescott joined the mission. All three helped spread the alarm that night.

2. Revere never completed the ride to Concord.
Longfellow’s poem suggests Revere successfully rode all the way to Concord. Historically, Revere was captured by British patrols near Lincoln and never reached Concord. Samuel Prescott was the only one of the three riders who completed the mission and delivered the warning there.

3. He probably never shouted, “The British are coming!”
The famous phrase has become part of American folklore, but historians believe Revere never said it. Most colonists still considered themselves British, so the warning would have made little sense. Contemporary accounts indicate he warned that “The Regulars are coming out,” while quietly alerting Patriot leaders rather than shouting through the streets.