Israel Bissell

Israel Bissell (1752 – October 24, 1823) was a patriot post rider in Massachusetts who brought news to American colonists of the British attack on Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. He reportedly rode for four days and six hours, covering the 345 miles from Watertown, Massachusetts to Philadelphia along the Old Post Road, shouting "To arms, to arms, the war has begun", and carrying a message from General Joseph Palmer, which was copied at each of his stops and redistributed. It is said that Isreal Bissell was the inspiration for song "Paul Revere's Ride", by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Life Israel Bissell Jr. was born to Israel Bissell Sr. (1718–1776) and Hannah Sackett (1726–1799) in the year 1752. His precise date of birth is unknown. His birthplace was East Windsor Hill, Connecticut Colony, now part of the town of South Windsor, Connecticut. Not much is known in his life up to the 1775 midnight ride from Lexington to Philadelphia. Letter According to legend, at the end of Bissell's first leg, Watertown to Worcester, his first horse collapsed and died from having been driven so hard.