Bundled against the bitter cold, approximately 70 people joined Glover’s Marblehead Regiment and its annual march from the old townhouse to the tomb of General John Glover at Old Burial Hill.
Clad in 18th-century military uniforms, the reenactors walked through the Historic District’s meandering streets, covered with a freshly fallen snow. Drummers set a steady pace, while dozens of townspeople carrying lanterns illuminated the way forward. Residents along the .5-mile route stepped outside their doors or peeked through frosty windows.
“Tonight we remember General Glover as a war hero who sacrificed his fortune, his health and his family for a greater cause,” said the regiment’s captain, Seamus Daly, standing before Glover’s tomb. “He was not the only leader of the Revolutionary War to make such sacrifices, but his resolve and vision remind us of the caliber of leadership we aspire to today.”
Born in Salem and a lifelong Marblehead resident, Glover’s strategic military brilliance was crucial to the Revolutionary War, Daly said. Leading the Marblehead regiment, he saved Gen. George Washington’s army at Long Island and ensured victory at Trenton by ferrying troops across the Delaware River on Christmas in 1776.
After the Revolutionary War, Glover returned to Marblehead and resumed his role as a community leader despite the toll the war had taken on his health and fortune. He was elected as a selectman six times, a role that allowed him to directly shape the town’s governance and recovery in the post-war years. During his tenure, he worked to rebuild the town’s economy and infrastructure, which had suffered during the conflict.
The ceremony concluded with three thunderous musket volleys and shouts of “huzzah” ringing out. The regiment members and a smaller crowd marched to general’s historic home on Glover’s Square, lanterns bobbing in the dark, to fire their muskets in one more final salute.
