How militias were formed and implemented A casual discussion and 20-30 minute film. Presented by Heritage Films, Dan Tremblay, volunteer and member of DHS. Share your knowledge in casual conversation. Bring your lunch, tables are available. Bring your lunch! NEW for 2025: Partnering with the Danvers Senior Center to offer more films Tapley Memorial Hall,...

Join us for an afternoon discussing one of the lesser-known skirmishes of the early Revolutionary War. Colonel Timothy Pickering was present on that day and at his home 250 years later, we’ll gather together local historians and pull out objects from our archives and more as we discuss the events of that storied day and...

On the 250th Anniversary of Leslie's Retreat, this National Park Service exhibit will explore why Crown soldiers under Lt. Col. Alexander Leslie came to Salem on February 26, 1775, who were the major players in the event, and how this event has been remembered and celebrated in Salem in the last 250 years. This free...

All are welcome to join at 9:30am at St. Peter’s-San Pedro Episcopal Church at 24 St. Peter’s Church to learn the history behind Leslie’s Retreat, and to hear from current elected officials. For more information about this program CLICK HERE  Beginning at 10:30 am with the tolling of the church bells, the Red Coats will...

Join us for a FREE 90-minute Trolley tour from Salem to Marblehead and back will discuss how and where the American Revolution could have started in Marblehead and/or Salem on February 26, 1775, almost two months before the first battles of the Revolutionary War at Lexington and then Concord on the 19 th of April....

The Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) invites you to step back in time with Fashion in the Season of Revolution, a dynamic exploration of the intersection between style, society, and conflict in the Revolutionary era. This engaging program, presented in cooperation with Leslie’s Retreat 250, offers a unique blend of scholarship, storytelling, and immersive experience, combining...

The Revolution Ball is a colonial dress/black tie evening of live music, dancing, food, and drinks. The event celebrates the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of Leslie's Retreat from the Salem gun powder raid of 1775. In February of 1775, Colonel Alexander Leslie and his British regulars were sent to raid the gunpowder and cannon...

Held in Salem’s Historic Old Town Hall, step back into Salem on the eve of the American Revolution for the anniversary of Leslie’s Retreat and Revolution 250! Its autumn of 1774, Salem is the seat of the newly appointed Royal Governor, General Gage- welcomed by some, resented by others. With their local government severely constrained...

On Sunday, February 26, 1775, about 250 British soldiers marched through Marblehead, sent by the royal governor to search for weapons. When that column of redcoats stalled at a drawbridge in Salem, their commander ordered locals to let them pass. Militia companies were assembling to stop them. If that confrontation had turned violent, it could...

Join the Museum of Old Newbury and the Custom House Maritime Museum for the kick-off event to a year-long exploration of Newburyport's role in the American Revolution. Join historian and author Alexander Cain for a captivating lecture exploring the roots of the American Revolution, focusing on Newburyport, the Merrimack Valley, and Essex County. Explore the 17th and...

****THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT**** Join us for a lecture by Historian Alex Cain, followed by drilling demonstrations performed by reenactors from Danvers & Lexington. In October 1774, the Massachusetts Provincial Congress ordered the towns across the colony to prepare for war with England. In response, Essex County entered a wartime phase that included creating...