Built in 1680, the Paul Revere House is the oldest remaining home in downtown Boston and a National Historic Landmark. It was almost demolished in 1902.

 

Fun Facts

• The home was built in 1680. Previously, Cotton Mather’s (Salem Witch Trial) parish home was on the site, but burned in the Great Fire of 1676.
• It was made of wood and had three stories.
• Paul Revere, the famous American patriot who rode all night long to worn the colonists that the “British are coming,” owned the home from 1770 to 1800.
• When he sold it, it became a tenement house with apartments upstairs and shops on the ground floor. Over the years, the shops included a candy shop, grocery store, cigar factory, and bank.
• The house was scheduled to be demolished in 1902 when John P. Reynolds, Jr., Paul Revere’s great grandson stepped in. He worked carefully with historic preservation experts to restore the house and opened it as a museum in 1908. Over 90 percent of the house is from the original 1680 construction.

 

Vocabulary

1. Tenement: apartments, usually for people with little money
2. Preservation: the act of saving or preserving

 

Questions and Answers

Question: Was Paul Revere always well-known for his midnight ride?

Answer: No. Paul Revere was remembered in Boston for his heroic act, but nationally, he’d been largely forgotten until Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote and published his poem, “Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride.” Revere’s life was notable for other things besides his ride: Revere had 16 children.

He was a well-respected businessman and silver smith. He believed that every man should learn a trade. He was also involved in community and political life.

 

Learn More

Visit the  Paul Revere House Museum.