Patriots’

April 15, 2024

On the back page of the front section of my local newspaper I came across a USA Today article on the significance today holds in American history.  While many in the US know today is famous as Tax Filing Day, that is not what the article highlighted.  Instead, it addressed an event which allowed for the later creation of the IRS and the annual filing.  While the third Monday of April is now recognized as the official date, this was first celebrated in Massachusetts on April 19, 1894.  The celebration commemorates the battles of Lexington and Concord, as well as the aftermath of the “shot heard ‘round the world”.  While this is not a federal holiday and is mostly associated with Massachusetts, it is also celebrated in five other states.

When I looked online, I found Patriots’ Day (Patriot’s Day in Maine) is an annual event that has been formalized as a legal holiday or special observance day in six US states.  The day has been set aside to commemorate the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Menotomy, some of the first battles of the American Revolutionary War.  The holiday occurs on the third Monday of April each year, with celebrations including battle reenactments and the Boston Marathon.  In 1894, The Lexington Historical Society petitioned the Massachusetts General Court to proclaim April 19 as “Lexington Day” in 1894 and the city of Concord countered with “Concord Day”.  The biggest battle fought on this day was in the town of Menotomy (Arlington) on the Concord Road between Lexington and Boston.  Governor Frederic T. Greenhalge opted for a compromise, Patriots’ Day.  This included the larger Battle of Menotomy and consolidated the long held city observance of Lexington Day and Concord Day.  It is likely the battles that took place in Menotomy are less known than the battles in Lexington and Concord because the town has changed names several names since 1775.

When Governor Greenhalge proclaimed Patriots’ Day in Massachusetts in 1894 it also marked the first bloodshed of the American Civil War in the Baltimore riot of 1861.  Greenhalge explained this dual commemoration celebrated “the anniversary of the birth of liberty and union”, commemorating the opening events of the American Revolution and replacing Fast Day with Patriots’ Day.  Maine followed in 1907 and replaced its Fast Day with Patriot’s Day.  Governor Dannel Malloy of Connecticut signed a bill June 10, 2017, to establish Patriots’ Day as a statewide unpaid holiday, and became the fifth state to recognize the holiday.  Governor Doug Burgum signed a bill recognizing Patriots’ Day in the state of North Dakota on March 19, 2019.  The Boston Marathon has been run on Patriots’ Day every year since its inception in 1897, even during the World War years.  The only exception was 2020 and 2021 due to the covid pandemic.  The holiday is sometimes referred to as “Marathon Monday”.  The Boston Red Sox have been scheduled to play at home in Fenway Park on Patriots’ Day every year since 1959, although events have caused the game to be canceled.

THOUGHTS:  It is interesting to note that Patriots’ Day was created to diffuse a rivalry between the cities of Lexington and Concord which had held dueling celebrations to mark the beginning of the American Revolution.  The events of the day were first enlarged to include other battles, and then subsumed by sporting furor for the Marathon and Red Sox.  The holiday replaced the Catholic focus (Fast) with a Revolutionary focus (battles) and finally a sports focus.  Perhaps all the workers really wanted was another day off.  As focus changes, we adapt old ways for the new (like Christmas?).  While this is not a bad thing, it does tell us where priorities lie.  Act for all.  Change is coming and it starts with you.