In an eye-opening look at the history of America's revolutionary struggle, the author of A People's History of the American Revolution describes how, in the years prior to the Battle of Lexington and Concord, local people took the British authority to declare themselves free from colonial oppression. 10,000 first printing.

As the second-largest city in New England, Worcester is well known for its contributions to manufacturing and transportation. However, many other people and events contributed to the building of this city. Timothy Bigelow led a revolution to take back Worcester from British rule almost two years before the Declaration of Independence. Abby Kelley Foster helped establish the first national women's rights convention in Worcester and was a leading voice against slavery. The city was also home to one of the nation's first professional baseball teams, the Worcester Brown Stockings. Join local author Dave Kovaleski as he reveals the stories behind revolutionaries, reformers and pioneers from the "Heart of the Commonwealth."

This book provides an in-depth look at the role played by the town of Worcester, Massachusetts during the American Revolution. Albert Alonzo Lovell draws on a variety of sources to offer a detailed account of the town's history during this pivotal period. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

How ordinary people went from resistance to revolution: “[A] concise, lively narrative . . . the authors expertly build tension.” —Publishers Weekly Americans know about the Boston Tea Party and “the shot heard ’round the world,” but sixteen months divided these two iconic events, a period that has nearly been lost to history. The Spirit of ’74 fills in this gap in our nation’s founding narrative, showing how in these mislaid months, step by step, real people made a revolution. After the Tea Party, Parliament not only shut down a port but also revoked the sacred Massachusetts charter. Completely disenfranchised, citizens rose up as a body and cast off British rule everywhere except in Boston, where British forces were stationed. A “Spirit of ’74” initiated the American Revolution, much as the better-known “Spirit of ’76” sparked independence. Redcoats marched on Lexington and Concord to take back a lost province, but they encountered Massachusetts militiamen who had trained for months to protect the revolution they had already made. The Spirit of ’74 places our founding moment in a rich new historical context, both changing and deepening its meaning for all Americans.

Bathsheba Spooner, daughter of infamous Massachusetts Loyalist Timothy Ruggles, conspired with two British POWs and her teenage American soldier/lover to kill her Patriot husband. All four were hanged in Worcester July 2, 1778. Spooner, five months pregnant, was the first woman executed in the new nation.

Author Kenneth J. Moynihan chronicles the fascinating early history of this bustling junction town and offers readers a front-row view of Worcester's dramatic, nearly forgotten past. The Nipmuc Indians destroyed the first settlement at Worcester in 1675. A second attempt was made in the 1680s, but a permanent settlement did not take root until 1713. Worcester's first citizens battled French and Indian enemies and endured a succession of political, ethnic and religious rivalries. How did the Nipmuc deal with the English threat? How did settlers cope with changes in economic and political life after the Revolution? For the first time in 170 years, a historian takes a fresh look at the history of early Worcester.