Concord
Joining these local writers was sculptor Daniel Chester French, who created his first, and probably most renowned sculpture—except for the Lincoln Memorial—“The Minute Man.” More practical pursuits led Ephraim Bull to cultivate the Concord grape, which was the start of commercial production of table grapes in this country.
Concord maintains a stately New England elegance with its many fine homes and historic sites. Concord Guides Walking Tours offers 2-hour walking group tours of Concord. The tours, conducted on weekends mid-April to November 1 (weather permitting), are led by licensed, local guides who discuss the area's Colonial and Revolutionary past as well as its literary, natural and social heritage. Departures require a minimum of six people, and reservations are required; phone (978) 287-0897.
As an alternative to a walking tour visitors can rent a canoe from the South Bridge Boat House on the Sudbury River on SR 62; phone (978) 369-9438. The banks of the river, which feature a canopy of branches and gracious hillside houses, remain much as they were in the 1700s.
Concord is accessible by two scenic highways: SR 119, which travels northwest toward New Hampshire, and Lexington Road (SR 2A), which passes through Minute Man National Historical Park en route to Lexington.
Visitor Centers
Concord Chamber of Commerce 15 Walden St. Concord, MA 01742. Phone:(978)369-3120
Things to Do
Concord Art AssociationGreat Meadows National Wildlife Refuge
Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House
MINUTE MAN NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK see place listing.