Concord in Middlesex County, Massachusetts — The American Northeast (New England)

Benjamin Barron House

Built 1716

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 1, 2024

1. Benjamin Barron House Marker

Inscription. This house was built here by Benjamin Barron before the birth of this Nation on a parcel of land previously owned by William Baker.

It was considered an old house as it stood mute witness to the march of the British soldiers on that fateful day in 1775.

Here the slave John Jack earned his freedom as a shoemaker. His epitaph in the Hill Burying Ground is world famous.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Architecture • Cemeteries & Burial Sites • War, US Revolutionary. A significant historical year for this entry is 1716.

Location. 42° 27.485′ N, 71° 20.425′ W. Marker is in Concord, Massachusetts, in Middlesex County. It is on Lexington Road 0.1 miles west of Ridge Road, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 249 Lexington Rd, Concord MA 01742, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Boston.

It is also in the American Northeast

and in New England.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Orchard House (approx. ¼ mile away); Bedford Minutemen (approx. 0.3 miles away); Casey’s Home (approx. 0.3 miles away); The First Settlement - 1635 (approx. 0.3 miles away); Nathaniel Hawthorne (approx. 0.4 miles away); The Larch Path (approx. 0.4 miles away); The First Provincial Congress

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(approx. 0.4 miles away); Ephriam Wales Bull (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Concord.

Regarding Benjamin Barron House. John Jack's epitaph was written by Daniel Bliss, a Concord lawyer who was the executor of Jack's estate. The epitaph reads:

God wills us free; man wills us slaves.
I will as God wills; God’s will be done.
Here lies the body of
JOHN JACK
a native of Africa who died
March 1773 aged about 60 years
Tho’ born in a land of slavery,
He was born free.
Tho’ he lived in a land of liberty,
He lived a slave.
Till by his honest, tho’ stolen labors,
He acquired the source of slavery,
Which gave him his freedom;
Tho’ not long before
Death, the grand tyrant
Gave him his final emancipation,
And set him on a footing with kings.
Tho’ a slave to vice,
He practised those virtues
Without which kings are but slaves.

Also see . . . Daniel Bliss and John Jack: Loyalty’s Cost, Freedom’s Price. Bliss’ epitaph [for Jack] contains a not-so-subtle jab at the [Patriot] neighbors who would force him to flee for his life two years later, who

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 1, 2024

2. Benjamin Barron House Marker

held others in slavery while they cried out for liberty. Those words have made John Jack’s grave one of Concord’s most memorable historic sites. (Victor Curran, Discover Concord magazine) (Submitted on November 9, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

John Jack's Grave Marker image. Click for full size.

"Walkies Through History" blog (Public Domain)

3. John Jack's Grave Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on November 9, 2024. It was originally submitted on November 9, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 545 times since then and 58 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 9, 2024, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.