(Janet Uhlar’s interview with Arun Rath on Boston GBH’s ‘All Things Considered’) Below is the link to an interview regarding newly published, documented information which answers the question of Dr. Joseph Warren’s great enigma to remain safely in Boston when most Patriot leaders fled. In the interview Warren’s unique ability and crucial role in igniting the American Revolution is finally explained. This interview with Arun Rath, host of Boston …
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Jul 2026
As long as the British troops occupied Boston and Charlestown, Joseph Warren’s mother, Mary, and his brothers, Sam, Eben, and Jack, were unable to retrieve his remains from Breed’s Hill. It would be almost a year before the British evacuated. Joseph died without a will, therefore, during this darkest period of grief his loved ones took care of the immediate needs of Joseph and his wife Elizabeth’s four orphans, …
JACK WARREN WAS THE YOUNGEST OF THE FOUR WARREN BROTHERS – THE SONS OF JOSEPH WARREN SR. AND MARY (STEVENS) WARREN. Joseph Sr. died instantly from a fall while picking apples in the family’s orchard in Roxbury, Massachusetts. Jack, only two-years-old, witnessed his father’s death. The shock of this tragedy can hardly be imagined Joseph, Mary’s eldest son, had just begun his freshman year at Harvard. He was fourteen …
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Jun 2026
On the night of June 16, 1775, an earthen redoubt was to be constructed under the cover of darkness on a prominence on a peninsula in the town of Charlestown known as Bunker Hill. In earlier discussions of occupying this hill, Warren was skeptical. Now, there was no choice. On the morning of June 17, Warren discovered that the redoubt was not constructed on Bunker Hill, as planned, but …
There was a spy among the inner circle of Boston’s Patriot leaders (Dr. Benjemin Church) and Massachusetts military governor General Thomas Gage was fully aware that Warren had a position of leadership in the destruction of the tea; was an outspoken member of the “illegal” MA Provincial Congress; authored the Suffolk Resolves which called for preparation for conflict; and was the one who united – though was not present …
Joseph Warren was able to take on risks no other Patriot leader could due to his prominent Masonic position of Most Worshipful Grand Master of North America. His name and position were known throughout the colonies. This position offered him respect and protection from fellow colonists and British officers alike. As mentioned in my previous post, when Boston Patriot leaders feared taking on a necessary secret mission to England, …
The Lodge of St. Andrew owned the building that housed the Green Dragon Tavern in Boston. The second level of this building was used for lodge meetings and rooms were made available to various resistance groups. Loyalist Governor Thomas Hutchinson referred to the Green Dragon as a “nest of sedition.” Daniel Webster referred to it as the “Headquarters of the Revolution.” It was within this building that plans were …
Dr. Joseph Warren was a Freemason, and though this was customary in 18th century Europe and America, there was nothing common about Warren’s involvement in the Craft. In 1761, while training as a medical apprentice he entered the Lodge of St. Andrew (Boston’s ancient lodge). He attended meetings sporadically then stopped attending for four years. In 1765 – Warren had his medical practice established, was married and had a …
All works on Joseph Warren note his involvement in Freemasonry but fail to recognize the probable planning of Warren and others for him to ultimately obtain the title and position of Most Worshipful Grand Master of North America. Freemasonry became a distinguished fraternal organization in eighteenth century Europe and America and was an intrinsic part of colonial society. It promoted not only social connections but acts of charity as …
Many ask, “Why did Joseph Warren risk his life by participating in this battle?” His friends and colleagues implored him not to go. His commission as major general of the Massachusetts forces was not official. “You are needed in council” they protested. His response to such protests: “Dulce et decorum est pro patris mori,” (“It is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country,”) Was his determination to participate …