The things!
Thursday April 17, 2025
Candlelight Vigil
7:30pm
This will be pretty cool. If you can find a lantern of your own (or maybe a candle), you too can march in this candlelight procession at the Old North Bridge, or you can just come and watch. But worth going to either way.
Detail info is here: https://massachusetts250.org/event/patriot-vigil-minute-man-nhp/
Some Tips!
There are great places to eat dinner in town before the vigil but you need to be done with dinner by 7pm hard stop to give yourself time to walk over to the North Bridge (15 min walk) by 7:30. Mid April in Boston is also likely to still be cold at night so... don't dress like my kids.
Friday April 18, 2025
We recognize you have dutifully come to town but there are not a ton of official events today. This is the day when you can support local businesses by eating, shopping and dressing up in Colonial garb. We tend to dress up in colonial garb at the drop of a hat, so come join us! You can order your tri-peak hat in the online shop. You will look great. Really.
Concord Center Shops
All day
Concord is an awesome place to wander around. There is Sleepy Hallow Cemetery, Walden Pond, Thoreau's Cabin (which is surprisingly little and everybody always makes it sound like he was completely off the grid but he was, like, a mile from town which you will be too, if you walk over to Thoreau's cabin), the Alcott House, and then some strange things like the Old Mill Dam which I still can't quite figure out. But the point is that today is a perfect day to wander around and see it all!
West Concord Center Shops
All day
Wait, there is a West Concord?? Hold the phone.
West Concord is 3 miles from Concord center, because, well, god forbid you would be too far from church when your horse was tired. But please come and wander around West Concord. More cute shops and a brand new bike path runs for 26 miles. Oh! And the prison (now closed). But who doesn't want to see the prison? "Look kids, the prison!"
Saturday April 19, 2025
This is the day! All the things! But first of all - you are going to walk. A lot. Not quite as much as the British trudging in and out of Boston while getting shot at by the residents, but it might be close.
Shooting muskets at dawn
6:00am
You read this right. 6am. Wake up like our ancestors did. Actually, maybe don't go to sleep. Because you are going to have to wake up at 4am to get your Dunkin Donuts coffee and stand outside in the cold waiting for us to figure out how to fire our muskets. If you are really going to get up this early, you may want to go to Lexington for the 5:15am re-enactments that commemorate the very first shots fired. But then come back to Concord for our parade at 8:30am! Huzzah!
The Parade!
8:30am
Who doesn't love a parade! You can find the parade route here. I don't think Santa is going to be on the fire truck. Details here: https://visitconcord.org/blog/concord250-patriots-day-2025-parade-route/
Ceremony at the Old North Bridge
9:30am
This is when all of the big wigs say beautiful things. And we shoot cannons! And for those of you who have been up since 4am, this will feel like lunch time!
TIP: To see anything, it will be better to come into the North Bridge park from the "top", which is also the north. For those of you bad at directions, just follow the parade.
More parade
11:00am
The parade will leave the ceremony described above and continue back into town so if you didn't get up early, you can see it during this window of time.
Concord Center Block Party
1:00pm
Good times will be had by all. Unless it is raining and you have little kids who are hungry and have to go to the bathroom. There are a whole kaleidoscope of activities in town. Details can be found here:
Minuteman National Park Activities
All day
If you have not gotten enough steps in by this point, you should definitely wander onto the Battle Road trail where there will be even more people dressed in colonial garb saying even more insightful things. Details can be found here:
Light and Drone Show
7:30pm
This is going to be super cool. I don't know what it is but it sounds awesome. The word is that this will be in the center of town with the drone show itself starting at 8:15pm
Sunday April 20, 2025 (Easter Sunday)
If sleep really has just become a detail in your life, then there is even more for the early risers!
Easter Service at the Old North Bridge
6:00am
Every year Trinitarian Congregational Church hosts a sunrise service at the Old North Bridge up near the Visitors Center. All are welcome. The service is about 30 minutes. But the sun rises over the park and it is very pretty and a beautiful, and relatively short, way to welcome Easter for those of you who celebrate Easter.
Tough Ruck 2025
8:30am
About 1,000 military personnel will be kicking off the 2025 Tough Ruck race just up the road from the North Bridge to recognize and commemorate all of the selfless contributions of our military. So please come out and cheer them on! Details can be found here:
More church!
All day
It is Easter. And you are in New England. And there are probably 8 churches per square mile. And remember none of them can be further than 3 miles away because your horse might get tired. So don't hesitate to pick one of your choice if you are religious. They all have wonderful Easter services.
Moday April 21, 2025 (Marathon Monday)
If sleep really has just become a detail in your life, then there is even more for the early risers!
Boston Marathon
9:00am
Come into the city and cheer on runners who tackle this early season marathon though all kinds of weather. Details can be found here:
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