Leslie's Retreat Monument
| Monument Location | (click link for map) |
On February 26th, 1775, the first armed resistance by the colonies to British authority occurred on the North Bridge in Salem. When reports of illegally held ammunition were in North Fields, the British sent Colonel Leslie and 300 British soldiers from Boston to seize them. The citizens of Salem had been forewarned of the approaching British forces, so they gathered at the North Bridge and raised the draw.
No blood was shed that day as a compromise was reached between Colonel Pickering and Colonel Leslie. However, this event was nonetheless the unofficial beginning of the American Revolution.