Paul Revere was born in Boston in 1734. His father, a French Higuenot, raised him. His father's name was Apollos Rivoire. Two of Paul's talents came from his father. Paul's father taught Revere how to be a silversmith and a goldsmith. Paul Revere's father died when Paul was nineteen years of age. In the year 1756, Paul volunteered to fight the French at Lake George, New York. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the colonial artillery.

In August 1757, Paul Revere married Sarah Orne. Together they had eight children. Shortly after Sarah's death in 1773, he married Rachel Walker and had another eight children.

Image courtesy of Art Today. "The Old North Church"

On April 18, 1775, Paul Revere was sent by Dr. Joseph Warren to go to Lexington to warn John Hancock and Samuel Adams. Paul had to tell them that the Red Coats were coming to get them. He warned many people in Lexington that the British were coming through town. He saw that there were two lanterns in the bell tower of the Old North Church, meaning that the British Lobsterbacks were coming by sea. He and a friend had set up a plan that if the British were coming, that there would be a lantern in the bell tower. "One if by land and two if by sea," Paul said. Two other men also joined Revere in his journey to alarm the countryside. Later on, they were all arrested by the British patrol. Paul Revere was held for a long time before getting released. So then he returned to Lexington on foot and saw part of the battle of Lexington and Concord. The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, helps everyone remember Paul Revere. Grant Wood, famous American painter, painted Revere's famous late night ride.