584:, where were three or four men who had just prepared a bowl of punch, and which they presented to Colonel Prescott before having tasted it. This, to a man suffering with fatigue and parched with thirst, was a most gratifying and acceptable offering. Prescott took the bowl, but before he had time to partake of its contents a cannon ball passed through the house, upon which the men immediately fled, leaving Colonel Prescott to drain the bowl by himself and at his leisure. Dr. O. Prescott further relates that Colonel Prescott was a true patriot. As a neighbor, kind and benevolent, and a peacemaker in to his vain, and was universally loved and respected. William died of dropsy of the chest, in Pepperell and was buried with military honors suitable to his rank, life and character at Walton Cemetery. He fell at a ripe old age, full of honors, and highly esteemed and respected. His widow died October 21, 1821, aged 88 years.
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the
Colonel of the fact. 'How come you to know me?' inquired Colonel Prescott. 'I saw you on Bunker Hill,' replied the soldier, 'and recollected you immediately.' 'Why did you not kill me at that time?' asked Colonel Prescott. 'I tried my best,' said the soldier, 'I took deliberate aim at you more than once when I thought it impossible for you to escape. I also palsied at you several times with my bayonet when you were as near as I could have wished, and after several of us had taken possession of your works.' 'You are a brave fellow,' said Colonel Prescott, 'come into my tent and I will treat you.'" While on the retreat from the scene of conflict Colonel Prescott came to a house on Charlestown street, near the
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considerable portion of his body must have been exposed during the whole of the engagement. He wore a three-cornered cocked hat and a ban-yan or calico coat. After one of his men was killed by cannon ball, Prescott, perceiving that this had made some of the soldiers sick at heart, mounted tile para-pet and walked leisurely around it, cheering his soldiers by approbation and humor. His clothing was repeatedly spattered with the blood and the brains of the killed and wounded.
459:, the Commander-in-Chief, that he would retake the place that night or perish in the attempt, if Ward would give him three regiments, with bayonets and sufficient ammunition. But from prudential reasons it was declined. While the British successfully captured Bunker Hill, the poorly organized colonial forces inflicted significant casualties. The British were unable to capitalize their victory and lost 50 percent (killed or wounded) of the force commanded by
300:, on Prescott Street. Prescott was then a frontier town bordering upon Hollis N.H. In fact, the Indians long continued to be his neighbors, so that there when it was considered unsafe to go into the field to their daily labor without their rifles. Col. Prescott held his lands as his son, Hon. Wm. Prescott, late of Prescott, and his grandson Wm. H. Prescott, the historian, continued to hold them, under the original Indian title.
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Prescott ordered the
Connecticut men under Captain Knowlton to defend the left flank, where they used a crude dirt wall as a breastwork, and topped it with fence rails and hay. They also constructed three small v-shaped trenches between this dirt wall and Prescott's breastwork. Troops that arrived to
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In his person he was tall, with a large and muscular frame, but not corpulent, his features strong and indicative of intelligence. He was courteous and benevolent, and possessed a strong mind. Not having had the advantages of an early education he was most emphatically a self-made man. His departure
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Prescott is widely seen as having played a key role in the battle, keeping the relatively poorly trained militia under his command well-disciplined. As it was, however, the
British were left in possession of the field, for they had carried the position at the point of the bayonet and technically the
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The following anecdote the writer had from
Colonel Prescott himself: "While stationed with his regiment near New York in 1776, the out guards brought in a British deserter. As they approached the camp the deserter observed to the guards, 'That officer yonder is Colonel Prescott.' The guard informed
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Arriving before the Groton
Companies were ready, the Pepperell and Hollis companies, after a short halt, proceeded on their way in advance of the Groton companies. Col. Prescott hastened ahead with as many of his regiment as he could collect to Concord and thence to Cambridge, but did not overtake
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Cambridge, Massachusetts, has a small granite monument to the place where, on the night of June 16, 1775, 1,200 Patriot men assembled and were addressed by
Prescott and Harvard President Langdon, before their march to Bunker and Breed's Hills. See citation for picture of its inscription, which
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Dr. O. Prescott Jr. saw the waistcoat and the ban-yan coat after the engagement, and they had several holes pierced by the bayonets of the
British in their attempts at his life.” The Americans, although raw troops, fought with the bravery and obstinacy of veterans, until their ammunition was
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The breast work or redoubt was only constructed of such earth as the party had thrown up after the middle of the night and was not more than breast high to a man of medium height. Colonel
Prescott being a very tall man, six feet and two or three inches in height, his head and shoulders and a
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William
Prescott never owned slaves, and spoke out against the practice of slavery. Prescott advocated that Massachusetts outlaw slavery. When Massachusetts did abolish slavery in 1783, Prescott celebrated publicly. Prescott was also outspoken about his praise for African-American soldier
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In spirited battle, Prescott's men twice threw back
British assaults on the redoubt. When the British made a third attempt, his men were almost out of ammunition; after an initial volley, he ordered a retreat from the redoubt. He was one of the last men to leave the redoubt, parrying
564:, representative to the General Court for three years, and was an acting magistrate for the remainder of his life. When Shays' Rebellion broke out, he hastened to Concord, and assisted in protecting the courts of justice and of preserving law and order. Prescott served in the
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Col. Prescott continued in the service until the end of 1776. He was stationed at Governor's Island, N. Y., until the Americans were obliged to retire from the city. In the autumn of 1777, he went as a volunteer, to assist in the capture of the army under
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315:, and was a lieutenant in the Provincial troops which were sent to remove the neutral French from Nova Scotia in 1755. After his return he married Miss Hale, as above, and was promoted to the office of captain. In 1755, when the
486:, volunteered to serve under Colonel William Prescott in the defense of the redoubt as a private and wanted to be close to the battle. It is during the retreat from the redoubt on Breeds Hill that Joseph Warren was killed.
397:, the commander-in-chief, issued an order for placing three Massachusetts regiments (Col. Prescott's, Col. Frye's and Col. Bridge's) and one hundred and twenty men from a Connecticut regiment (under the brave command of
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Prescott was born in Groton, Massachusetts, to Benjamin Prescott (1696–1738) and Abigail Oliver Prescott (1697–1765). He married Abigail Hale (1733–1821) on April 13, 1758, and they had one child, who is named
668:(May 4, 1796 – January 28, 1859). This grandson became a noted historian and author, who (in a remarkable moment of historical reconciliation) married the granddaughter of Captain John Linzee, captain of HMS
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erroneously calls him a general. This monument is located on the lawn west of Harvard's Littauer Center, itself west of Harvard's Science Center, just outside Harvard Yard. See citation for location map.
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The detachment started from Cambridge Common at dark, proceeding silently to Bunker Hill. There, at about 11 o'clock pm, the troops commenced building the entrenchments as laid out by Captain
362:. The news reached Pepperell about 10 am. Prescott immediately gave orders for the company in Pepperell and the company in Hollis to march to Groton and thence to the scene of action.
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who fought with Prescott at Bunker Hill, going so far as to sign a letter to the court of Massachusetts praising his conduct in battle and advocating that he be rewarded for it.
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exhausted. Col. Prescott was always confident that he could have maintained his position, even with the handful of men under him, if he had been supplied with ammunition.
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at any time during the action, but was attempting to direct affairs, to unit commanders who often misunderstood or disobeyed orders from that position.
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Prescott's likeness was made into a statue for a memorial for the Battle of Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts and was dedicated in 1881.
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While Prescott appears to have given up command of the regiment after that campaign, he apparently participated in some capacity in the 1777
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reinforce this flank position included about 200 men from the 1st and 3rd New Hampshire regiments, under Colonels John Stark and James Reed.
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Among the many Americans who distinguished themselves at Bunker Hill the names of Prescott, Putnam and Warren stand out most clearly. While
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The Prescott memorial, or, A genealogical memoir of the Prescott families in America by Prescott, William, 1788-1875. Published 1870.
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In 1856, the Prescott School, named in his honor, was built on the northeasterly portion of the Bunker Hill Burying Ground in
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and other defensive works, and had only limited ammunition, formed the centerpiece of the American defenses when the British
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Colonel William Prescott's House (looking NW) in Pepperell, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. Photographed on June 18, 1941.
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Colonel Prescott's famous order, "Do not fire until you see the whites of their eyes," is a significant part of the
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When the American military commanders were alerted to British plans to capture undefended high ground at
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620:, was named in his honor. The town was disincorporated in 1938 as part of the building of the
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from military service may have been due to injuries sustained in an accident on his farm.
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Prescott stands right of center wearing all brown, just behind Captain Morgan in white
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held at Salem. After his retirement from the army he served the town as town clerk,
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Oration in Honor of Col. William Prescott: Delivered in Boston, 14 October, 1895
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in later years. He also served in the militia called out in 1786 to suppress
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was on the scene at Bunker Hill by some writers he was not in the redoubt at
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853:"Harvard/Radcliffe On-line Historical Reference Shelf: Cambridge Buildings"
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the retreating British troops. They arrived too late to participate in
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The next day, his troops, who were tired from working to construct a
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This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the
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875:"School History – About Us – William Prescott Elementary School"
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was said to be influential in the suppression of that outbreak.
727:"Surrender of General Burgoyne | Architect of the Capitol"
705:"Who Said, "Don't Fire Till You See the Whites of Their Eyes"?"
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named after Colonel William Prescott, but after his grandson,
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783:"10 Things You May Not Know About the Battle of Bunker Hill"
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In 1774, Prescott was appointed colonel of a regiment of “
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People of Massachusetts in the French and Indian War
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Col. Prescott's statue at Bunker Hill in Charlestown
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271:(February 20, 1726 – October 13, 1795) was an
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303:Prescott served in the provincial militia in
19:For other people named William Prescott, see
1038:Continental Army officers from Massachusetts
520:, for he is depicted in the painting of the
334:, was named after him. He was the father of
1010:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography
1058:Members of the Massachusetts General Court
745:"Key to the Surrender of General Burgoyne"
656:However, Prescott Street, two blocks from
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484:Committee of safety (American Revolution)
426:. The British began firing from the ship
16:American colonel in the Revolutionary War
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501:to take command of the forces besieging
279:who commanded the patriot forces in the
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948:Decisive Day: The Battle of Bunker Hill
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509:. The regiment saw service in the 1776
1068:18th-century Massachusetts politicians
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323:. He turned down an offer to join the
42:Statue of Colonel William Prescott in
1063:People from Pepperell, Massachusetts
908:. Bunker Hill Monument Association.
296:. William Prescott owned a house in
797:"Salem Poor, American Patriot born"
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1004:"Prescott, William, soldier"
680:William Prescott Elementary School
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432:at 4 a.m. and attacked at 3 p.m.
393:"On the 16th of June, 1775, Gen.
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330:The now-disincorporated town of
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946:Ketchum, Richard (1999).
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84:Pepperell, Massachusetts
950:. New York: Owl Books.
929:Oxford University Press
769:militaryhallofhonor.com
618:Prescott, Massachusetts
332:Prescott, Massachusetts
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839:"Harvard location map"
640:Warren-Prescott School
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150:Years of service
133:Massachusetts Militia
785:. 11 September 2023.
537:U.S. Capitol Rotunda
336:William Prescott Jr.
616:The former town of
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511:defense of New York
340:William H. Prescott
309:Siege of Louisbourg
294:William Prescott Jr
185:Siege of Louisbourg
924:Paul Revere's Ride
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765:"William Prescott"
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313:William Pepperrell
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622:Quabbin Reservoir
518:Saratoga campaign
499:George Washington
368:the day's battles
344:Prescott, Arizona
305:King George's War
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731:www.aoc.gov
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476:Breeds Hill
387:Bunker Hill
383:Charlestown
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896:References
884:2018-12-13
750:2008-01-20
595:Salem Poor
547:Later life
356:minute men
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57:1726-02-20
690:Footnotes
562:selectman
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966:24147566
528:Saratoga
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120:Service/
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601:Legacy
503:Boston
429:Lively
311:under
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972:ISBN
962:OCLC
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713:2010
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287:Life
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51:Born
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