On Jan. 25, 1776, 250 years ago, Colonel Henry Knox and his men arrived in Boston, bringing with them 120,000 pounds of artillery from the captured British fortification, Fort Ticonderoga.
For 70 days, the 25-year-old colonel for the Continental Army traversed through heavy snow and icy rivers to bring the 59 pieces of equipment to the army camps located outside of Boston.
Now, 250 years later, two Central Massachusetts communities are commemorating Knox and his legendary expedition by holding re-enactments of the artillery train’s journey this weekend.
Old Sturbridge Village and the American Antiquarian Society in Worcester will host special events celebrating Knox’s artillery train, which passed through Central Massachusetts communities during its 300 mile trip from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston.
On Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 at Old Sturbridge Village, visitors can hear stories from performers acting as patriots who marched on the trail with Knox, see how the cannons were pulled by oxen, watch a demonstration of cannons being fired and even get the chance to use an artillery engine, according to Old Sturbridge Village’s website.
On both days, visitors will get the chance to see the artillery train in action as cannons, sleds and oxen will be seen moving throughout the countryside, the website reads.
Additionally, a former staff member of the Old Sturbridge Village who walked on the trail from Pittsfield to Cambridge in 1976 will share his story at this weekend’s event.
The village will hold events on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The American Antiquarian Society’s event will take place in Worcester on Jan. 31 and will feature a procession with horses, fife and drum players, and militia men, according to Jonathan Lane of Revolution 250, a nonprofit organization helping the society put on the event.
The procession will travel from Elm Park to the Worcester Common and give a militia salute over the grave of Timothy Bigelow, an American soldier from Worcester who fought in the war, according to Lane.
The event will begin at the AC Marriott 125 Front St., on Jan. 31. and will run from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
“I think he is one of the lesser known reasons of why we’re a thriving independent nation,” Lane said about Knox. “Imagine taking a 25-year-old today, giving them a thousand dollars and telling them to go off into the wilderness and find a newly captured fort and retrieve 60 tons of artillery and find a way to bring them back to Boston.”
Who was Henry Knox?
Henry Knox was born in Boston in 1750. At the age of 9, Knox left school to help his single mother and his brother by working in the bookbinding business, according to mountvernon.org.
While working, he had access to a large variety of books about weaponry and military strategy, the website reads.
“He’s essentially self educated,” said Lane. “He was well read in the military arts.”
Following his work, Knox opened his own bookstore, known as the London Book-Store. Lane said the bookstore was a popular social meetup where people picked up books, newspapers, ink, pens and papers.
One of the bookstore’s patrons was John Adams, who recommended Knox for a position in the Continental Army in 1775, according to mountvernon.org.
During the Siege of Boston, Knox, aged 25, was responsible for designing fortifications, Lane said.
General George Washington became impressed with Knox’s command of artillery and tasked Knox with an important mission — bringing artillery from Fort Ticonderoga in northern New York back to Boston.
The journey took place during a winter featuring heavy snow and icy lakes and rivers. Despite the cold conditions, the snow and ice was beneficial for Knox’s expedition, according to Lane.
“Heavyweights move best in winter,” he said. “Particularly if you have to cross bodies of water.”
While the ice and snow made it easier to move the equipment on sleds, the journey was no less difficult, Lane said.
“Knox had to bring the cannons down from Lake George, which was supposed to be one of the easier parts of trip but it ended up taking them almost nine days to get all the cannons down the lake,” Lane said. “Part of that was due to the adverse weather.”
Sometimes, the boats that carried the equipment capsized due to weight. Men had to raise the boats and cannons to continue the journey, Lane said.
In one letter to Washington, Knox called the obstacles “severe but surmountable,” according to Lane.
Central Mass.’s role in Knox’s journey
Along his journey, Knox recruited people from different communities to help bring the artillery from town to town. Worcester and other Central Massachusetts communities were no exception, as Knox hired residents from those towns and cities, too, according to Lane.
While Knox was able to encourage men from New York to travel with him to Massachusetts, they only got as far as Springfield, Lane said. As people left the train, new ones were added.
“He’s hiring and encouraging people to keep going, but he’s hiring people along the way,” Lane said. “These people are providing him fodder for his animals. There would be a steady stream of business for the inns and taverns of Central Massachusetts along the way.”
After delivering the equipment to Boston, Washington awarded Knox by assigning him as a colonel for artillery, Lane said. Knox was present during several key battles of the war, including the fortification of Dorchester Heights, the Battle of Trenton and the Siege at Yorktown.
Following the war’s end and the drafting of the U.S. Constitution in 1789, Knox became the nation’s first Secretary of War under President George Washington.
“I think that really speaks to their relationship,” Lane said of Knox and Washington. “Knox becomes one of a very small handful of leaders Washington can depend on.”
As Secretary of War, Knox promoted the idea of a peacetime army and negotiated with Native American nations, according to the National Museum of the United States Army. In 1795, Knox resigned from his position and moved to Maine. He died in 1806 at the age of 56.
In addition to having his route between New York and Massachusetts named after him, Fort Knox in Kentucky is also named after Knox.
“If he had lived longer, I would really be interested to see if his legacy was stronger than it is,” Lane said.
