This is the eighth of ten in the Boxborough-Centric geocache series. A complete list of the BC series can be found here.
This is a traditional geocache, located near the entrance to Boxborough’s Flerra Field. The container is a micro (small Bison tube) enclosed in some unusual camouflage; approach with caution. It has a log and a requisite clue for the tenth cache in the series, BC#10 Boxborough Centroid GC2DDCR. Bring a pencil for the log and a piece of paper on which to note the clue for BC#10. Cache is NOT snow friendly.
There is parking available at the listed waypoint, very close to the cache location, but the short walk to the cache requires some bushwhacking through wet and thorny terrain, so boots and long pants are recommended.
The Boxborough-Centric series is a collection of nine individual caches, each with a clue to the tenth. All are located in Boxborough, Mass. They will take you to some of the more interesting places in the town. You need to find ALL the first nine caches with their respective clues to find BC#10 Boxborough Centroid GC2DDCR. You do not need to find them in order.
Fifer’s Day is an annual town celebration in honor of Minuteman fifer Luther Blanchard. It is held each year at Flerra Field and draws large crowds. Luther Blanchard was a member of the Isaac Davis Minute Company of Acton, before Boxborough was a town. He was playing his fife at the front of the march on the British at the North Bridge on April 19th, 1775, where he was the first to be shot in the ensuing battle – the proverbial “Shot heard ‘round the world.” Captain Isaac Davis was killed shortly after that and is attributed with being the first to be killed in the battle, although Luther did later die of his wound. Luther lived at the north end of Hill Road in what is now Boxborough, so Boxborough claims him as its own. He is proudly displayed on the Town seal and the logo for the Boxborough Minutemen.
The Boxborough District Minutemen Company was founded in 1967 to perpetuate the memory of the brave minutemen of 1775 and to serve the community. They put on Fifer’s Day each year to further that cause. This geocache is dedicated to them.
You can find out more about the Boxborough Minutemen online at www.BoxboroughMinutemen.org
Some accounts of the battle at Concord can be read at:
An account of how the battle started
About Captain Isaac Davis' minutemen company
A discussion of the music being played by Luther Blanchard on the march to Concord
Period account of the battles of Lexington and Concord
If you want to see and hear a modern-day rendition of an excellent minuteman group check out the Middlesex County Volunteers Fifes & Drums here. Play the video on that page to watch them do their precision marching. It’s amazing.
A vivid symbol of American independence at the time of the Revolution was the rattle snake, which adorned flags in several forms. The most common representation was depicted over the caption “Don’t Tread on Me”. It’s unfortunate that this symbol has been abused for less noteworthy and extreme causes in present times.
I've included several pictures of the 2010 Fifer's Day celebration in the images links below.