At which bridge did Patriot militia confront British troops during the Battle of Concord?

Patriot militia confronted British troops at the Old North Bridge during the Battle of Concord. The encounter took place on April 19, 1775, during the opening military actions of the American Revolutionary War.

British regulars had marched from Boston to search for colonial military supplies in Concord. As local militia gathered, British troops reached the bridge and attempted to control the area. The militia advanced, and shots were exchanged as the British force withdrew toward Concord.

Ralph Waldo Emerson later described the first shot at Concord as the “shot heard round the world” in his 1837 poem “Concord Hymn.” The phrase became a powerful symbol of the Revolution, although the exact identity of the person who fired the first shot remains uncertain.

The Old North Bridge is in Concord, Massachusetts, not Boston. Its role connects the opening battles of 1775 with the independence movement commemorated during America’s 250th anniversary.