A cannon will be fired at Stage Fort Park on Saturday, Aug. 8 at 10:05 a.m. to commemorate the 1775 Battle of Gloucester.
Across Gloucester Harbor at the same time, a public ceremony will take place at the Gemmellaro-Ciaramitaro playground at 16 Fort Square in the city’s Fort neighborhood where a bronze plaque on a Cape Ann granite boulder serves as a reminder of that colonial battle. All are welcome to attend the ceremony.
Just months after the Revolutionary War began in Lexington and Concord in 1775, Gloucester colonists also would be faced with a fight against the British. In the end, two Gloucester men, Peter Lurvey and Benjamin Rowe, were killed in the action.
In the wake of Gloucester’s 400+ anniversary of its colonial settlement in 1623, Cape Ann’s chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution set out to erect a memorial about the battle and the two Gloucester patriots who were killed. That plaque was dedicated in August 2024.
That battle was significant to the American Revolution because it planted one of the seeds that a Continental navy was needed for defense against the British. The repeated coastal aggression by the British was referenced during the Second Continental Congress, which in fact did fund the creation of a navy.
This year marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, giving a heightened awareness to the nation’s founding.
This Saturday the Cape Ann DAR will hold a ceremony at 10 a.m. at the memorial where its regent, Sandy Barry, will share some remarks followed by the cannon firing across the harbor by David Dow.
The City of Gloucester put out a social media alert to let residents know that Cape Ann DAR will be honoring the anniversary of the Battle of Gloucester, which includes the cannon firing.
The ceremony will include the Fife & Drum Lexington Minuteman Unit, the reading of the plaque, along with remarks by Mayor Paul Lundberg, and descendants of those who fought in the 1775 Battle of Gloucester. They include Janet Foster Marshall, descended from Col. Foster, an American commander at the battle; and Linn Parisi, descended from Peter Lurvey and Benjamin Rowe.
Gail McCarthy may be contacted at 978-675-2706, or gmccarthy@northofboston.com.