Crispus Attucks

On the night of March 5, 1770, a crowd filled King Street in Boston. British soldiers stood in a line in front of the Custom House. Their guns were loaded. People yelled at them. They threw snowballs and chunks of ice. Near the front stood a sailor named Crispus Attucks.

A Sailor of Two Peoples

Attucks was born around 1723. He was probably born in Framingham, near Boston. His family was part African and part Native American. He may have been born into slavery. A person in slavery is owned by someone else. In 1750 a man in Framingham put an ad in a newspaper. He was looking for a runaway named Crispas. The runaway was 27 and very tall. Historians think this was Attucks. They are not sure. By 1770 Attucks worked on ships and on the docks of Boston.

British soldiers had lived in Boston since 1768. They were there to make people obey new tax laws. Many people in Boston hated the soldiers.

The Shooting

On March 5 the crowd pressed in on the soldiers. Then the soldiers fired. Two bullets hit Attucks in the chest. He died right there. Two other men died with him. Two more died later. In all, five men died from the shooting.

Patriot leaders called it the Boston Massacre. A massacre is the killing of many people who cannot fight back. Many people say Attucks was the first man to die. But no one wrote down who was shot first. Two other men fell at the same time.

On March 8 a huge crowd walked behind the coffins. Attucks was buried with the other men. They share one grave in Boston.

The Trial

The soldiers were put on trial for murder. A trial is when a court decides if someone broke the law. A lawyer named John Adams spoke for the soldiers. He said the crowd had attacked them. He called Attucks a "stout Molatto fellow." Six soldiers were found not guilty. Two were found guilty of a lesser crime. They were burned on the thumb and set free.

Remembered Later

For many years few people talked about Attucks. In the 1800s Black people in Boston worked to end slavery. They told his story again. In 1851 they asked the state for money to build him a monument. The state said no. In 1858 they began to hold Crispus Attucks Day each year. In 1888 a monument to the five men went up on Boston Common.

On the night of March 5, 1770, a crowd gathered on King Street in Boston, in front of the Custom House. A small group of British soldiers stood in a line with loaded muskets. People shouted at them and threw snowballs and chunks of ice. Near the front stood a sailor named Crispus Attucks.

A Sailor of Two Peoples

Attucks was born around 1723, probably in Framingham, Massachusetts. He had both African and Native American ancestors. He may have been born into slavery. In 1750 a man named William Brown of Framingham put an ad in a Boston newspaper for a runaway named Crispas, about 27 years old and six feet two inches tall. Historians think this was Attucks, but they are not certain, and they do not know what happened next. By 1770 Attucks was working as a sailor and on the docks of Boston.

British soldiers had been stationed in Boston, placed there on duty, since 1768. Their job was to make the colonists obey new tax laws. Townspeople and soldiers often fought in the streets.

The Shooting

On March 5 the crowd pressed in on the soldiers. Then the soldiers fired. Two bullets hit Attucks in the chest, and he died where he fell. Samuel Gray and James Caldwell were also killed on the spot. Samuel Maverick, a boy of seventeen, died the next morning, and Patrick Carr died of his wound nine days later. Five men in all died from the shooting.

Patriot leaders called it the Boston Massacre. A massacre is the killing of many people who cannot defend themselves. Paul Revere made a picture of the shooting, and copies spread through the colonies. It does not show Attucks as a man of color. People have long said that Attucks was the first man to die that night. No record from 1770 says who was shot first, and Gray and Caldwell died at the same time.

On March 8 thousands of people followed the coffins of Attucks, Gray, Caldwell and Maverick through the streets. The four were buried together in the Granary Burying Ground. Carr was buried with them later.

The Trial

Captain Thomas Preston and eight soldiers were charged with murder. John Adams, a Boston lawyer and a Patriot, agreed to defend them. Preston was found not guilty in October 1770. The soldiers' trial came in late November. Adams told the jury that the crowd had attacked the soldiers. He called Attucks "a stout Molatto fellow, whose very looks, was enough to terrify any person." Six soldiers were found not guilty. Two, Hugh Montgomery and Matthew Kilroy, were found guilty of manslaughter, a killing that was not planned. They were branded on the thumb and set free.

Remembered Later

For many years after the war, few people spoke of Attucks. In the 1800s Black Bostonians who worked to end slavery took up his story. In 1851 seven of them, including the writer William C. Nell, asked the state for $1,500 for a monument to Attucks. The state said no. In 1858 they began holding Crispus Attucks Day every March 5. On November 14, 1888, a monument to the five men killed on King Street was unveiled on Boston Common, with Attucks shown on its bronze panel.

On the night of March 5, 1770, a crowd gathered on King Street in Boston, outside the Custom House. A small group of British soldiers stood in front of the building with loaded muskets. People in the crowd shouted at them, dared them to fire, and threw snowballs and chunks of ice. Near the front stood a sailor named Crispus Attucks.

A Sailor of Two Peoples

Attucks was born around 1723, probably in Framingham, Massachusetts. He had both African and Native American ancestors. He may have been born into slavery. In 1750 William Brown of Framingham placed an advertisement in the Boston Gazette for a runaway "Molatto Fellow, about 27 Years of Age, named Crispas," six feet two inches tall. Historians think this was Attucks, but they are not certain, and no record says whether he was ever caught. By 1770 he was working as a sailor, sometimes on whaling ships, and as a laborer on the Boston docks.

British soldiers had been stationed, placed on duty, in Boston since 1768 to enforce new tax laws passed by Parliament. Many townspeople resented them. Soldiers and workers fought in the streets and taverns, and on March 2 a brawl broke out between soldiers and workers at a ropewalk, where ropes were made for ships.

The Shooting

On the evening of March 5, a crowd surrounded a lone soldier on guard at the Custom House. Captain Thomas Preston marched seven more soldiers out to protect him. The crowd pressed in, and then the soldiers fired. Two bullets hit Attucks in the chest, and he died where he fell. Samuel Gray and James Caldwell were also killed on the spot. Samuel Maverick, a seventeen-year-old apprentice, died the next morning, and Patrick Carr died of his wound nine days later. Five men in all died from the shooting.

Patriot leaders named it the Boston Massacre. A massacre is the killing of a number of people who cannot defend themselves. Paul Revere's engraving of the scene, which shows the soldiers firing on an orderly crowd, sold through the colonies. It does not show Attucks as a man of color. People have long said that Attucks was the first man to die that night. No record from 1770 fixes the order, and Gray and Caldwell died at the same time.

On March 8 thousands of people followed the coffins of Attucks, Gray, Caldwell and Maverick through the streets. The four were buried together in the Granary Burying Ground. Carr was added to the grave later.

The Trial

Preston and eight soldiers were charged with murder. John Adams, a Boston lawyer and a Patriot, agreed to defend them, with Josiah Quincy. Preston was tried first and found not guilty on October 30, 1770. The soldiers' trial ran for nine days in late November and early December. Adams told the jury that the crowd had been "a motley rabble of saucy boys, negroes and molattoes, Irish teagues and out landish jack tarrs," meaning Irishmen and sailors from other ports. He pointed to "a stout Molatto fellow, whose very looks, was enough to terrify any person," and argued that the soldiers had fired in fear for their lives. The prosecutor, Robert Treat Paine, told the jury that Private Hugh Montgomery had killed Attucks.

The jury found six soldiers not guilty. Montgomery and Matthew Kilroy were found guilty of manslaughter, a killing without planning, and were branded on the right thumb and released.

Remembered Later

For decades after the war, few people spoke of Attucks. In the 1800s Black Bostonians who worked to end slavery took up his story. On February 22, 1851, seven of them, including the historian William C. Nell, asked the Massachusetts legislature for $1,500 for a monument to Attucks, "the first martyr of the American Revolution." The committee that heard them reported against it. In 1858 Nell and others began holding Crispus Attucks Day every March 5. On November 14, 1888, a monument to the five men killed on King Street was unveiled on Boston Common, with Attucks shown on its bronze panel.

On the night of March 5, 1770, a crowd gathered on King Street in Boston, outside the Custom House, where the king's customs duties were collected. A small group of British soldiers stood in front of the building with loaded muskets. People in the crowd shouted at them, dared them to fire, and threw snowballs and chunks of ice. Near the front stood a sailor named Crispus Attucks.

A Sailor of Two Peoples

Attucks was born around 1723, probably in Framingham, Massachusetts. A Philadelphia newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette, reported on March 22, 1770, that he had been "born in Framingham." He had both African and Native American ancestors, and most historians think his Native ancestry was Wampanoag. He may have been born into slavery. In 1750 William Brown of Framingham placed an advertisement in the Boston Gazette for a runaway "Molatto Fellow, about 27 Years of Age, named Crispas, 6 Feet two Inches high." Historians think this was Attucks, but they are not certain, and no record says whether he was ever caught. They also disagree about whether he lived in 1770 as a free man or as a fugitive. By then he was working as a sailor, sometimes on whaling ships, and as a laborer on the Boston docks.

British soldiers had been stationed, placed on duty, in Boston since October 1768 to enforce the Townshend Acts, taxes that Parliament had placed on goods such as paper, glass and tea. Many townspeople resented them, and soldiers and townspeople fought in the streets and taverns. On March 2 a brawl broke out between soldiers and workers at a ropewalk, where ropes were made for ships.

The Shooting

On the evening of March 5, a crowd surrounded a lone soldier on guard at the Custom House. Captain Thomas Preston marched seven more soldiers out to protect him. The crowd pressed in, and then the soldiers fired. Two bullets hit Attucks in the chest, and he died where he fell. Samuel Gray, a ropemaker, and James Caldwell, a sailor, were also killed on the spot. Samuel Maverick, a seventeen-year-old apprentice, died the next morning, and Patrick Carr, an Irish immigrant, died of his wound on March 14. Five men in all died from the shooting, and six more were wounded.

Patriot leaders named it the Boston Massacre. A massacre is the killing of a number of people who cannot defend themselves. Soon afterward Paul Revere was selling an engraving of the scene that shows a line of soldiers firing on command into an orderly crowd. It does not show Attucks as a man of color. People have long said that Attucks was the first man to die that night. The claim has some support, because the prosecutor later said that Private Hugh Montgomery, who witnesses said fired first, was the soldier who killed Attucks. But no record from 1770 fixes the order of the deaths, and Gray and Caldwell died at the same time.

On March 8 thousands of people followed the coffins of Attucks, Gray, Caldwell and Maverick through the streets. The Boston Gazette reported the funeral on March 12. The four were buried together in the Granary Burying Ground, and Carr was added to the grave later.

The Trial

Preston and eight soldiers were charged with murder. John Adams, a Boston lawyer and a Patriot, agreed to defend them, with Josiah Quincy. Adams later wrote that a defense lawyer "ought to be the very last thing that an accused Person should want in a free Country." Preston was tried first, from October 24 to 30, 1770. Some witnesses testified that they had heard no order to fire, and the jury found him not guilty. The soldiers' trial ran for nine days, from November 27 into December. Adams told the jury that the crowd had been "most probably a motley rabble of saucy boys, negroes and molattoes, Irish teagues and out landish jack tarrs," meaning Irishmen and sailors from other ports. He pointed to "a stout Molatto fellow, whose very looks, was enough to terrify any person," and argued that the soldiers had fired in fear for their lives. The prosecutor, Robert Treat Paine, told the jury that "Montgomery killed Attucks and Kilroy killed Grey."

The jury deliberated about two and a half hours. It found six soldiers not guilty. Montgomery and Matthew Kilroy were found guilty of manslaughter, a killing without planning, and were sentenced to death. Both claimed benefit of clergy, an old English rule that spared a first offender who could read, and instead of hanging they were branded on the right thumb and released.

Remembered Later

For decades after the war, few people spoke of Attucks. In the 1800s Black Bostonians who worked to end slavery took up his story. On February 22, 1851, seven of them, including the historian William C. Nell, asked the Massachusetts legislature for $1,500 for a monument to Attucks, "the first martyr of the American Revolution." The Committee on Military Affairs heard them and reported against the petition, on the ground that a boy, Christopher Seider, had been shot and killed in Boston eleven days before the massacre. Nell printed the petition and the refusal in his 1855 book, The Colored Patriots of the American Revolution. In 1858 Nell and others began holding Crispus Attucks Day every March 5. On November 14, 1888, a monument to the five men killed on King Street was unveiled on Boston Common, with Attucks shown on its bronze panel.