Captain William Smith House

A Captain's Home

This home was built in the 1690s and, by 1775, was the residence of Captain William Smith, the commander of the Lincoln minutemen. A newcomer to the town in 1774, Smith was the brother of Abigail Adams, which may have contributed to his prominent position. The Smith household included an enslaved black man named Cato. On the morning of April 19, 1775, Captain Smith mustered his militia to confront the British at the North Bridge outside Concord.

As the British retreated towards Boston, the running battle passed by the Smith house around 1:30 PM. A mortally wounded British soldier may have been cared for by Captain Smith’s wife in the days following the battle. After the war, the house changed hands several times before becoming part of Minute Man National Historical Park in 1975. The National Park Service has restored much of the original structure to its 1775 appearance. Nearby, visitors can explore the North Bridge, the Minute Man Statue, and the Hartwell Tavern, all of which offer insights into the early battles of the American Revolution.