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Secondary sourceSpeech22 February 1899

The Ride of Paul Revere

Charles Reynolds Brown · 22 February 1899

A short 1899 speech-turned-essay examining the history behind Longfellow's famous poem about Paul Revere's ride.

Examines the historical accuracy behind the famous legend of Revere's midnight ride.

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About this source

What it is

This is a short written piece from 1899 by Rev. Charles Reynolds Brown, based on a speech he gave at a banquet of the Sons of the American Revolution in San Francisco on February 22, 1899. It looks at the real history behind Paul Revere's midnight ride, which had been made famous by a poem.

Why it matters

By the late 1800s, Revere's ride was known to most Americans through Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem rather than through historical records. This piece shows people at the time trying to separate the popular legend from what actually happened, and reveals how important Revere's story had become for American patriotic identity.

Look closer

  • Why might a speaker at a patriotic banquet choose to talk about the real history behind a famous poem?
  • What does it suggest that part of the original speech was left out before printing?
  • How might a poem change the way people remember a historical event compared to a historical record?

This speech is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Paul Revere on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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