Editing Boston Massacre (section)

==Incident==
[[File:Boston Massacre, 03-05-1770 - NARA - 518262.jpg|thumb|A variation of [[Paul Revere]]'s famous engraving, produced just prior to the [[American Civil War]], which emphasizes [[Crispus Attucks]], the black man in the center who became an important symbol for abolitionists.<ref>O'Connor, ''The Hub'', p. 56.</ref>]]
[[File:BostonMassacre byAlonzoChappel1878.png|thumb|An 1868 print by [[Alonzo Chappel]] showing a more chaotic scene than most earlier representations]]
[[File:Boston Massacre victims headstone (36128).jpg|thumb|A grave marker for the [[Granary Burying Ground]] in [[Boston]], where those killed in the Boston Massacre were buried]]
On the evening of March 5, Private Hugh White stood on guard duty outside the [[Boston Custom House]] on King Street (today known as State Street). A wigmaker's apprentice, approximately 13 years old, named [[Edward Garrick]] called out to Captain-Lieutenant John Goldfinch, accusing him of refusing to pay a bill due to Garrick's master.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.history.com/news/the-boston-massacre-245-years-ago|title=Remembering the Boston Massacre|last=Andrews|first=Evan|website=HISTORY|language=en|access-date=2020-02-20}}</ref> Goldfinch had settled the account the previous day, and ignored the insult.<ref name=Allison11>Allison, ''The Boston Massacre'', 11.</ref> Private White called out to Garrick that he should be more respectful of the officer, and the two exchanged insults. Garrick then started poking Goldfinch in the chest with his finger; White left his post, challenged the boy, and struck him on the side of the head with his musket. Garrick cried out in pain, and his companion Bartholomew Broaders began to argue with White, which attracted a larger crowd.<ref>Zobel, ''The Boston Massacre'', pp. 185–186.</ref> [[Henry Knox]] was a 19-year old bookseller who later served as a general in the revolution; he came upon the scene and warned White that, "if he fired, he must die for it."<ref name=Allison11/>

As the evening progressed, the crowd around Private White grew larger and more boisterous. Church bells were rung, which usually signified a fire, bringing more people out. More than 50 Bostonians pressed around White, led by a mixed-race former slave named [[Crispus Attucks]], throwing objects at the sentry and challenging him to fire his weapon. White had taken up a somewhat safer position on the steps of the Custom House, and he sought assistance. Runners alerted [[Thomas Preston (British Army officer)|Captain Thomas Preston]], the officer of the watch at the nearby barracks.<ref>Allison, ''The Boston Massacre'', p. 12.</ref><ref>Archer, ''As if an Enemy's Country'', p. 190.</ref> 

According to Preston's report, he dispatched a non-commissioned officer and six privates from the grenadier company of the [[29th Regiment of Foot]] to relieve White with fixed bayonets.<ref>Zobel, ''Boston Massacre'', p. 194.</ref><ref>Archer, ''As if an Enemy's Country'', p. 191.</ref> The soldiers were Corporal William Wemms and Privates [[Hugh Montgomery (British Army soldier)|Hugh Montgomery]], John Carroll, James Hartigan, William McCauley, William Warren, and [[Matthew Kilroy (British Army soldier)|Matthew Kilroy]], accompanied by Preston. They pushed their way through the crowd. Henry Knox took Preston by the coat and told him, "For God's sake, take care of your men. If they fire, you must die."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/bostonmassacre/prestontrialexcerpts.html|title=Account of the trial of Captain Preston|website=law2.umkc.edu|access-date=2020-04-23}}</ref> Captain Preston responded "I am aware of it."<ref>Zobel, ''Boston Massacre'', 195.</ref> When they reached Private White on the custom house stairs, the soldiers loaded their muskets and arrayed themselves in a semicircular formation. Preston shouted at the crowd, estimated between 300 and 400, to disperse.<ref name=Z196>Zobel, ''Boston Massacre'', p. 196.</ref>

The crowd continued to press around the soldiers, taunting them by yelling "Fire!", by spitting at them, and by throwing snowballs and other small objects.<ref name=Z197>Zobel, ''Boston Massacre'', p. 197.</ref> Innkeeper Richard Palmes was carrying a cudgel, and he came up to Preston and asked if the soldiers' weapons were loaded. Preston assured him that they were, but that they would not fire unless he ordered it; he later stated in his deposition that he was unlikely to do so, since he was standing in front of them. A thrown object then struck Private Montgomery, knocking him down and causing him to drop his musket. He recovered his weapon and angrily shouted "Damn you, fire!", then discharged it into the crowd although no command was given. Palmes swung his cudgel first at Montgomery, hitting his arm, and then at Preston. He narrowly missed Preston's head, striking him on the arm instead.<ref name=Z197/>

There was a pause of uncertain length (eyewitness estimates ranged from several seconds to two minutes), after which the soldiers fired into the crowd. It was not a disciplined volley, since Preston gave no orders to fire; the soldiers fired a ragged series of shots which hit 11 men.<ref>Zobel, ''Boston Massacre'', 198–200.</ref> Three Americans died instantly: rope maker Samuel Gray, mariner James Caldwell, and Crispus Attucks.<ref name=ShortNarrative11>''A Short Narrative'', 11.</ref> Samuel Maverick, a 17-year old apprentice ivory turner,<ref>Zobel, ''Boston Massacre'', 191.</ref> was struck by a ricocheting musket ball at the back of the crowd and died early the next morning. Irish immigrant Patrick Carr was shot in the abdomen, an inevitably fatal wound at that time, and died two weeks later.<ref name=ShortNarrative11/> Apprentice Christopher Monk was seriously wounded;<ref>Archer, ''As If an Enemy's Country'', 196.</ref> he was crippled and died in 1780, purportedly due to the injuries that he had sustained in the attack a decade earlier.<ref>Allison, ''The Boston Massacre'', x.</ref><ref name=Miller395/>

The crowd moved away from the immediate area of the custom house but continued to grow in nearby streets.<ref>Zobel, ''Boston Massacre'', p. 201.</ref> Captain Preston immediately called out most of the 29th Regiment, which adopted defensive positions in front of the state house.<ref>York, "Rival Truths", p. 61.</ref> Acting Governor [[Thomas Hutchinson (governor)|Thomas Hutchinson]] was summoned to the scene and was forced by the movement of the crowd into the council chamber of the state house. From its balcony, he was able to minimally restore order, promising that there would be a fair inquiry into the shootings if the crowd dispersed.<ref name=Bailyn158>Bailyn, ''Ordeal'', p. 158.</ref>