Sudbury Historical Society Talk

 

  On Saturday morning I  attended a tour of the  Wandsworth cemetery at Sudbury Massachusetts.  The cemetery is located on the lower slope of  the hill where Captain's  Wadsworth and Brocklebank and their  companies fought on 18 April 1676.  Most of the men killed during that action were buried in a mass grave near here and later moved to the large monument in the center of the cemetery.

The tour was put on by the Sudbury Historical Society.  In addition to talking about the Sudbury fight in 1676 it also talked about a number of the individuals  buried there.  Members of the society dressed in period clothing stood near that Igrave to tell you a little about them. It was most interesting and entertaining. 

I was particularly interested and enjoyed talking to the World War One "veteran" dressed in an authentic uniform of a member of a medical company.  My grandfather Edward McNamara served in the medical company of the 101st regiment 26th "Yankee Division."

Following talk I took a quick drive past some of the sites associated with the 1676 fight.  Looking at the picture of the monument the colonial companies had been fighting up the hill from where the monument is located today.  Driving up Concord road to Lancaster road you go between Goodwin and Green hills.  This is the area the Native warriors ambushed the companies marching from Marlboro to relieve the Haynes Garrison house.  The militia held if the warriors for a number if hours until they were forced to retreat down the hill when the grass and brush are set fire.  As they raced down the hill most were overtaken an killed.  Later their bodies were collected and buried about Fifty yards to the right of the monument.  When the monument was built in 1852 the mass grave was dug up and the bones re buried under it.  

About eleven militia men escaped the fight and took refuge in the Hop Brook Mill at the foot of the hill.  This is located by Concord road and Route 20 (The Boston Post Road) in Sudbury today.  The area has been built over and nothing remains of the battleground.

On the way home I made sure to go pass the Haynes garrison house site.  Its about two miles from the cemetery.  The site today is marked but very overgrown.  

There is also a good view of the area where the Concord river runs in the distance. Its along the modern tree line.   A small group of eleven men from Concord marched along the river to come to assist the town of Sudbury.  This view from the Haynes site showed the view the members of the garrison  might have had of the approach of the Concord men.  Near where the bridge is today (to the left of the tree in the distance) they were ambushed with only a single individual escaping.  Later the bodies were burning by the Bridge.