"The Shot Heard 'Round the World" Should Still Be Heard, Especially in Lexington

        What truly defines a community?  Where do we find our identity?  Can we go back to our birth to discover our true spirit? 

        The naming of Lexington shortly after the battle of Lexington is a remarkable story.  I have always wondered why we haven’t promoted this amazing link with the American Revolution.  I recently wrote letters to the Mayor, the City Council, the Tourism Authority and other community leaders, urging them to adopt the “Spirit of 1775,” as our birthright.  Here is the column I wrote for The Dispatch on June 21.  As we celebrate our nation’s birth next week I hope we who call Lexington, NC home will seize the “Spirit of 1775” and claim it for a new day!

        Listen my children and you shall hear of the midnight ride of Paul Revere." Nothing is more patriotic than reciting Longfellow's epic poem, recalling the brave Minutemen who gathered in the town tavern before confronting the British army on the Lexington green. The Brits must have been shocked when they arrived in Lexington, Massachusetts, in the wee hours of April 9, 1775, for they had no intention of waking the slumbering town. There was nothing in Lexington that concerned them — or so they thought.

The only reason the British were marching through Lexington was because it was on the way to Concord where the Patriots had a large arsenal of weapons and ammunition. But what they did not understand was there was something much more important to these passionate Patriots than guns and ammunition. It was this notion called freedom. The brave and courageous Minutemen stood their ground, but the British would not be deterred. "The shot heard 'round the world" was fired, and eight brave Patriots were quickly dead. The fight for independence had begun.

A few weeks later, as Dr. J.C. Leonard told the story, a messenger stopped in a small, unnamed North Carolina settlement and shared the riveting news from Lexington and Concord. The settlers, who also believed in this notion called freedom, were so deeply moved and inspired by the valiant sacrifice of the Minutemen that they made a stunning proclamation. They decided to name their settlement Lexington in honor of the New England battle.

Taking the name Lexington was indeed stunning because this part of North Carolina was swarming with Tories and British sympathizers. Only four years earlier Benjamin Merrill was hanged for treason for seeking a redress from the excessive taxation imposed by Gov. William Tryon. The members of his Regulator militia were forced to sign an oath of loyalty to the Crown or face the same fate. Yet, in this hostile environment, a full year before the Declaration of Independence, the spirited and freedom loving people who lived here took a bold and audacious risk — they staked their claim for the cause of freedom! "The shot heard 'round the world" was indeed heard loud and clear right here where we call home.

This is a powerful story that I have told many times. But I think we need to do more than tell this story, we need to claim it. This is our birthright! This is our legacy! This is who we are as a community! We were born in the "Spirit of 1775." It is this same spirit that can inspire and motivate us today.

Ten years ago I suggested that we should promote this unique legacy as part of our identity as a community. Bob Stiff, who was the editor of The Dispatch, endorsed the idea and wrote an editorial about it in July 2004. He stated: "Everyone involved in tourism promotion and economic development should be telling the tale about Lexington's unique and courageous declaration of independence more than 229 years ago." No one really took the ball and ran with it then, but today is a new day, and I am convinced that the time is right for us to claim our birthright. Yes, I'm back on my soapbox again.

Shortly before his death, Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel for a grand convocation. They had settled in the Promised Land but were experiencing many difficulties. Joshua felt that they had forgotten their past, their heritage — they had lost the spirit of freedom that had defined them for generations. The 24th chapter of Joshua is an historical recitation in which Joshua went all the way back to Abraham and reminded the people of their unique identity as a people blessed by freedom.

I have petitioned the mayor, the city council and community leaders to consider seizing the "Spirit of 1775" and claiming it as our birthright and identity as a community. I believe it can make a difference, not only in tourism and economic development, but it will also renew the true spirit of our community. After all, "The shot heard 'round the world" was quickly heard here and should continue to be heard today, especially in Lexington.