~ Background Information ~
Joseph Warren (1741-75) was a very popular and charismatic doctor, orator,
and author in Boston in the years before the American Revolution. Tall
and handsome, he was known to generously give of his considerable skills
as a physician to heal the poor free of charge. He played a key
leadership role in the resistance to British authority along with John
Hancock, James Otis, and Samuel Adams. His friendship with Paul Revere
did much to unite all social classes in the struggle for independence. He
was a skilled propagandist, often writing for the Boston Gazette
and
creating pamphlets and speeches. He was a member of the Boston Committee
of Correspondence, the Massachusetts Committee of Safety, and helped draft
the "Suffolk Resolves." His oratory reached its zenith in a speech he
delivered on the fifth anniversary of the Boston Massacre. When fighting
finally broke out, he treated the wounded at Lexington and worked
diligently to create a provisional army and to rally the cause for
independence throughout the colonies.
On June 14, 1775, Warren was elected a major general of the
provincial army. Despite his rank, he volunteered to fight as a common
soldier in the Battle of Bunker Hill. During that battle, on the third
and final assault on the American redoubt, Warren led the fight out of the
redoubt. Lacking ammunition, Warren and three others fought off the
advancing regulars with rocks, sticks, and fists. Turning to shout to his
retreating comrades, Warren was killed instantly by a shot to the head.
Warren was soon immortalized as the first great martyr to the cause of
American independence. Abigail Adams, who along with thousands of other
Bostonians witnessed the battle from the city, expressed the sentiments of
many when she wrote to her husband: "I have just heard that our dear
Friend Dr. Warren is no more but fell gloriously fighting for his
Country — saying better to die honourably in the field than
ignominiously
hang upon the Gallows. Great is our Loss." (2)
Joseph Warren married Elizabeth Hooton (1746-73) in 1764.
Together they had four children: Joseph, Elizabeth, Richard, and Mary.
After his wife passed away in 1773, Warren sent his four children to live
with his mother in Roxbury. Eventually, he became engaged to Mercy
Scollay, who after his death took care of his youngest children, Richard
and Mary. (3)
Clearly then, Warren is not taking leave of his wife in this
sentimental portrait that first appeared in the Columbian Magazine.
The
engraver is Thomas Kelley (1795-1841), who was born in Ireland and died a
pauper in Philadelphia. Although we know little of Kelley's career, we do
know he worked as an engraver in Boston, Philadelphia, and New York City
from 1823 through 1835. (4)
This image is one of the many examples of how Warren's celebrated life and
heroic death were used to unite and inspire the young nation. The image
is very romantic, with the stalwart Warren holding his rifle while the
woman pleads for him to stay, pointing to the adorable child peeking over
the edge of the crib. This image illustrates the honorable Doctor Warren's
choice of duty to his country and the ideal of freedom over his own
personal happiness.
1. American National Biography, s.v. "Joseph Warren." (NY:
Oxford, 1999).
2. Adams, Abigail. Letters of John Adams and of Mrs. Adams.
(Boston:
Little, Brown, 1841) vol. (2) p. 53.
3. Fleming, Thomas J., Now We Are Enemies: The Story of Bunker
Hill. (New York: 1960) p. 61.
4. Stauffer, David McNeely. American Engravers Upon Copper and
Steel. (New York: Grolier Club, 1907), 149.
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