This week, under the direction of Mrs. Traini, you will perform our Spring Concert, the “Rhythm of the Republic,” singing some of the songs that shaped America.  Throughout the year, I often profile for you some of the great people who have shaped our nation.  But this week, I thought it might be useful, as you prepare to sing the history of America, to remember a few of the unsung heroes of our country.

Henry Knox lacked any formal military education.  He was just a plump, 24-year-old bookseller. But he impressed George Washington when, in 1775, Washington arrived in Boston to take command of the Continental Army and gave Knox the job of transporting cannons from Fort Ticonderoga in New York, over 300 miles of winter terrain, to Boston.  Knox used large, ox-drawn sleds to move the cannons, to Dorchester Heights in Boston, where they were pointed at the British troops, and forced their evacuation.

Washington picked Knox over more experienced military veterans to serve as his chief artillery officer during the Revolution. Eventually, Knox would manage the logistics for Washington’s crossing of the Delaware River and was also put in charge of the siege at Yorktown that ultimately led to the British surrender. Knox was later named Washington’s first secretary of war. 

Knox is not unknown—cities and towns are named after him, as is Fort Knox (you know, where they keep the gold).  But his name is not a household name in America; and yet his story is a reminder that you don’t have to be the most credentialed or most experienced to make a big difference.

Have a wonderful day.