Apollos Rivoire, a French goldsmith, changed his family's name upon his arrival in America. His second oldest was born as Paul Revere in Boston's North End. At the age of 19, after his father died, Paul took over the family business and started supporting his family. In 1756, he volunteered to fight the French and served as a second lieutenant in the British army.
Devoted to Freedom
In the years leading up to the Battles of Lexington and Concord, Revere worked tirelessly for the patriot cause. A member of the Freemasons, the mechanics union, the Sons of Liberty and other groups, Revere became a nexus in the social networks of the revolution. In his workshop he printed anti-occupation propaganda: engravings illustrating the arrival of the British Navy and the Boston Massacre. In the evenings, he harassed officials charged with collecting the taxes that Americans found so unfair. On December 13, 1773, Revere and his associates dressed as Indians and dumped tea into Boston Harbor.
