Harwich Dedicates Revolutionary War Memorial

 HARWICH – A crowd gathered at the Walk of Remembrance in Evergreen Cemetery on Saturday for the dedication of the town’s Revolutionary War Memorial honoring the more than 400 Harwich soldiers who fought in the war for independence.

 The two-hour event before about 125 people included multiple presentations, music by the Harwich Town Band and the Bristol County Fife and Drum Corps, and a musket salute from the Yarmouth Minutemen and Wareham Militia. 

 “Today is about more than celebrating a date in history,” said Cemetery Administrator Robbin Kelley. “It is about remembering the men and women who helped shape our community and our nation, and recognizing generations who have continued to protect the freedoms established 250 years ago.

 “What began as an idea has grown into a lasting tribute to the generations of men and women who have served our nation. This Walk of Remembrance will allow future generations to come here, learn our history, and reflect on the sacrifices made to protect our freedom,” she said.

 Kelley was praised for her relentless pursuit of the project, seeking funding through the Community Preservation Act, researching the names of soldiers who served in the war and working with Thomas Blute of Henry T. Crosby & Son, who created the design of the memorial. 

 Select board member Mark Kelleher thanked everyone who worked on the project, especially Kelley, the cemetery commission, town staff, volunteers and researchers.

 “May this Walk of Remembrance always remind us that freedom is precious, that our history deserves to be protected, and that those who helped secure our independence will always have a place in the story of Harwich,” said Kelleher. 

Town Administrator Jay McGrail said the community gathered to honor the men who answered the call for liberty during the American Revolution. From a small Cape Cod town, he said, more than 400 of them served.

 “This memorial is more than stone and craftsmanship,” he said. “It reflects our responsibility to keep the stories of those who came before us, and to make sure future generations understand what it costs to secure the freedoms we enjoy today.” 

More than 250 years ago, America was not yet a nation and the future was uncertain and the outcome of the struggle for independence was far from guaranteed, said Brigadier General Anthony Schiavi, UFAF (retired). Yet ordinary men and women made extraordinary choices.

 “The men and women we honor today were not professional soldiers,” he said. “They were farmers, fishermen, merchants, craftsmen, laborers and neighbors. They had families who depended on them. They had responsibilities at home. They had every reason to hope someone else would answer the call. Instead, they chose to answer it themselves. 

 “They left the familiarity of their homes and entered a conflict that demanded tremendous sacrifice. They endured hardship, uncertainty and danger because they believed in something larger than their own comfort and security. They believed that future generations deserved the opportunity to live in freedom and govern themselves. That belief changed the course of history.”

The legacy of Harwich’s Revolutionary War veterans endures, he said.

 “It endures in the freedoms we enjoy. It endures in the institutions you helped create. It endures in the town you helped shape. And it endures in the grateful hearts of all who gather here today,” he said.

Local historian Lynne Zalesak, dressed in period apparel, spoke in the voice of several wives of soldiers, noting that the war was not only fought by husbands, brothers and sons, but also the women who remained at home. She said the American Revolution is both a story of the battlefield and of the impacts on families and communities on the homefront.

She said her research of records and documents — including town meeting records, diaries, letters and military records — paint a picture of what was happening at home and on the battlefield. She emphasized the importance of preserving documents and accessing museums, libraries and genealogy to better understand history.

Zalesak’s husband, Robert Parr, also in period apparel, spoke as soldier Ebenezer Broadbrooks, reading a letter from the time, with Broadbrooks speaking about the commitment to shape destiny without knowing what the future would bring.

 “When the alarm sounded, every farm and shore answered,” he read. “More than four hundred of us left our saltworks, our fishing boats, our families. We did not march for grand monuments or for our names to be carved in granite. We fought for the radical idea that the people of Harwich should decide their own destiny. We fought so you could look at the horizon and see opportunity, not oppression.”

The Revolutionary War Memorial is the first installation at the Walk of Remembrance in the East Harwich cemetery. The cemetery commission will be seeking Community Preservation Act funds for Civil War and World War I and II memorials to be located there in the future.

A Living History Fair held at the community center after the ceremony allowed residents to explore life during Revolutionary War times.