Unlike many other books about early American history, The Minutemen and Their World, by Robert A. Gross, does not focus on the founding fathers or “textbook-quality” events that are known today to have paved the way to the American Revolution. Instead, the theme is focused on the everyday life of the people living in and around Concord, Massachusetts; a colonial city outside of Boston with a vast amount of problems and troubles. The Minutemen and Their World provides a social history, which is key to understanding the views of the common people. There are three major topics that can be pulled from the main theme of analyzing the lives of the townspeople: Farming, Family, and Politics. The book uses a “bottom-up” approach of writing by first
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Also, Concord initially had many political problems ranging from the locations of government buildings, to how much power should be given to the Church. At first, most of the townspeople supported the Crown, but the “bottom-up” method that Gross uses of reviewing history showed the progression of Concord coming together in support of the revolution. Gross also emphasizes the importance of April 19th, 1775, the very beginning of the Revolution, when the British brutally invaded Concord early one morning. Soon after April 19th, 1775, the townspeople began to unite based on their desire to preserve their heritage and end the British oppression. After the revolution, Concord was anything but perfect. It was an economic and social disaster fueled by common post-war troubles that many towns faced when trying to fit into the newly founded United States. This book represents far more than just the history of Concord, Massachusetts. Instead, Gross’s depictions of Concord before, during, and after the war are almost directly comparable to almost all of America during each time
Also, Concord initially had many political problems ranging from the locations of government buildings, to how much power should be given to the Church. At first, most of the townspeople supported the Crown, but the “bottom-up” method that Gross uses of reviewing history showed the progression of Concord coming together in support of the revolution. Gross also emphasizes the importance of April 19th, 1775, the very beginning of the Revolution, when the British brutally invaded Concord early one morning. Soon after April 19th, 1775, the townspeople began to unite based on their desire to preserve their heritage and end the British oppression. After the revolution, Concord was anything but perfect. It was an economic and social disaster fueled by common post-war troubles that many towns faced when trying to fit into the newly founded United States. This book represents far more than just the history of Concord, Massachusetts. Instead, Gross’s depictions of Concord before, during, and after the war are almost directly comparable to almost all of America during each time