Even with allid of the successes of his administration, historians have consistently rated him low out of i believe ideological bias. Act look at Ronald Reagans life after leaving the white house. I like to read about them because they grew up in the 80s. But i also write about the fact. Believe that any sort of candor and so that. I think that weve succeeded in reconditioning people thinking about Ronald Reagan that was a picture that emerges of a very serious deep thinking can interest duplicitous man. Tonight at a eastern on q a area all weekend we feature western massachusetts. 1848 is located about 40 miles west of boston. Recentlyty tour staff visited many locations. Learn more about this all weekend here in america. Most americans think the American Revolution started at lexington and concord in april. And most have a sense that paul revere rode to the countryside but in fact the countryside was wide awake. I think we get most of our history from home desktop by longfellow called the night right of all revere. We forget that home was written in 18 to one. What hes really talking about is the civil war and the threat from the south to the north. In fact in 1774, the countryside particularly in massachusetts is very much white away. Officerral commanding waysd governor was in many trying to recapture countryside that was lost in his efforts to seize the arms and concord. What happens in what we are terming the wister revolution of 1774 is how the people really rebelled against the british people and essentially should down Royal Authority from the time of the tea party through early 1775. Enraged by the intolerable acts that take lace. As being for primary act. In fact the one that impacted most people in rural massachusetts was the massachusetts government. It completely change the government. When they were given a Royal Charter to establish a colony government, one of the intolerable acts eliminates that charter and essentially a thetary government in ways act also empowers him to make lots of changes to the court jurorsincluding again there are other ways. The government had solidifying power. One of the most egregious things that does is it limits town meetings once a year and all tones have to submit their agenda. So we were outraged by the fact would lost all that power to do that. But in the communities in the town they had militias that they get more and more polarized in this time. Nearly 5000 richmond from 37 different communities descend upon wister and literally close the courthouse. They take all of the court to thels from the shares clerks to the judges and say force them they create a resignation that they asked them to read. They force these people timeouts this commission. They say this resignation over and over again so all of the companies can hear it. So from that point on the courts never open again. Theres no moral government had any power or any thing. Happen alllosings over the colony. Its not that wister is the first it monitors the most spectacular. They have actually there for a long 4600. The large number and its very piece. That gauge is going to end true but at the last minute he doesnt. Powerful of this is a test its an entirely peaceful one. Placef this action takes around the courthouse design means trade which runs northsouth. There are a number of caverns on main street and its the Meeting House which is also the congregational church. Much of the built environment today doesnt exist. The courthouse does its a private home that was moved several times from its original of nation that is now in a residential section and is a private home. It looks like a federal style building. This is the single most important piece of evidence that we have about the revolution in 1774. This is the diary of Frances Parkman was a longtime administrator in westborough massachusetts. Yet the diary for decades. In this intrigue he describes the number of militiamen who come to wister in 1774. He was the towns that they came from and the number of militiamen that came from each town. And then the details of where they stood on main street that each company could be could hear the recantation of the court officials. Forced to resign the commission. The legacy is one of self empowerment and selfregulation. These people although they were armed, they would leave their operatesnd area they there were nearly 5000 of them area they operate very peacefully i think its something that is there inherent in their worldview and something that would kind of therited as american, for most part there people who believe in the power of law and believe in peaceful demonstration and thats a key component for how we have enacted urschel and political change since the revolution. I think theres also something about the fact that there are so many that these are Common People middleclass people there landowners their farmers there knowledgeable about the issues. Thinkersare not great they are not john adams or thomas jefferson, they are the only will do the fighting. Fight aroundwill the entire American Revolution. Abouts something middleclass, americans taking their government that our cities to our staff recently traveled to massachusetts to learn about the rich history. Learn more about the location at cspan. Org. Youre watching American History tv, all weekend, every weekend, on cspan3. Next, on the presidency, author catherine