Dr. Joseph Warren (1741-1775) came from an average middle-class farming family not far from Boston. He attended school and then at the age of fourteen he went to Harvard and graduated with his medical degree. It is through being a doctor that he met many of the Revolutionary leaders and became their friend. He was a dedicated doctor and cared for all of society, from the poor to the wealthy. He felt that it was his responsibility to protect the community. During the horrible smallpox epidemic of 1763, he set up an inoculation clinic on Castle William in Boston Harbor. He was able to reduce the number of deaths from smallpox, which gained him much praise.

In addition to being a doctor, he was highly involved in the Masonic Lodge.  In 1772, he was named the Grand Master of Masons for the Continent of America. Through the connections he made while being a doctor and a Mason, he was able to form a well-established spy network during the Revolution. It is through this network that he learned of the British plans to ride to Lexington in order to arrest Samuel Adams and John Hancock. He urged Paul Revere and William Dawes to make that midnight ride to warn their leaders of the impending danger.

After the battles at Lexington and Concord, Warren left his practice in order to treat the wounded at the battle sites and to join the upcoming fights. He was so well known and respected that he was named the second general of the Massachusetts forces. During the battle of Bunker Hill, which actually took place at Breed’s Hill, Warren joined as a regular soldier and refused to take command. It is here that Warren lost his life while protecting the last fleeing soldiers. The British buried him in a mass grave where he was later uncovered and then identified by Paul Revere. Warren became memorialized as a symbol for the plight of Americans. After his death, the states honored him by naming a town after him. All throughout New England there are counties and towns named Warren. 

By: Jessica McKenzie

Credits and Sources:

Bryer, Emily Jane. “Warren, Joseph.” Penn State: Pennsylvania Center for the Book. Last updated Fall 2009. Accessed September 12, 2016. http://pabook2.libraries.psu.edu/palitmap/bios/Warren__Joseph.html

National Park Service. “Doctor Joseph Warren.” U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed September 19, 2016. https://www.nps.gov/bost/learn/historyculture/warren.htm

Wildrick, George C. “Dr. Joseph Warren: Leader in Medicine, Politics, and Revolution.” Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings 22, no. 1 (Jan. 2009): 27-29. Accessed September 11, 2016. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2626357/