A new historic marker celebrating the visit to Watertown by the Marquis de Lafayette in 1784 will will be unveiled on Sunday, April 19.
The public is invited to the unveiling of the Lafayette Trail Revolutionary War Marker. The Lafayette Trail is partnering with the Historical Society of Watertown to host the event which will take place on the green-space triangle by the walking path next to the Halfway Café at 394 Main St., Watertown, on Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 10 a.m.
The new marker was donated to the City of Watertown by The Lafayette Trail, Inc., with funding from the William G. Pomeroy Foundation. It is one of 170 markers on the Lafayette Trail, which stretches from West Point to Yorktown and from sites up and down the Mississippi River and Eastern seaboard commemorating Lafayette’s farewell visit 200 years ago, according to the Lafayette250.org website.
During the Revolutionary War, the Frenchman served as a general in the Continental Army under George Washington. Lafayette took part in the Battle of Gloucester in Massachusetts, the Battle of Rhode Island in Newport, as well as the decisive siege of Yorktown.
His farewell visit took Lafayette through Watertown on his way from Hartford to Boston.
“On October 15, 1784, General Lafayette was feted in Watertown by fellow Revolutionary War officers as he traveled from Hartford to Boston. After enjoying a meal and much camaraderie with his hosts, Lafayette resumed his journey east,” the maker unveiling announcement said.
An account from the Massachusetts Centinel newspaper from 1784 provided some details of the celebration.
“On its being announced that the Marquis was approaching the town, a large and respectable number of officers of the late American Army, with whom the dangers and fatigue of war cemented the bonds of friendship and brotherhood, met him in Watertown, when after mutual congratulations on the occasion they partook on an elegant dinner for the purpose, a number of well adapted toasts were drank.”
The dinner was attended by the lieutenant governor, the president of the Senate, the Speaker of the House, the captain of a French frigate, the French Consul, and “several other gentlemen of distinction.” The Governor and the Council of Massachusetts were also invited, but “business of importance” prevented them from attending, the newspaper reported.
The United States Chronicle had an account of the dinner: “At, this happy meeting of the Marquis with his brother officers, an honest, an affectionate joy was displayed, known only, perhaps, to those, who, in common danger and sufferings have experienced the most exalted feelings of which human nature is capable,” an account from the time read. “Mirth and felicity pervaded the whole company. The band of music played a number of animated marches, and 13 patriotic toasts crowned the entertainment.”
While it is not known where Lafayette’s celebration took place, it may have taken place at the Coolidge Tavern, which stood on the south side of the Galen Street Bridge where the MBTA bus yard is located, said Joyce Kelly from the Historical Society of Watertown.
After the dinner, Lafayette was honored once again, receiving a cannon salute by an artillery company under the command of Robert Davis.
In the days that followed, Lafayette attended several celebrations in Boston, including a reception hosted by Revolutionary veterans headed by General Henry Knox on Oct. 16, 1784, a celebration of British General John Burgoyne’s surrender at Saratoga on 17th, a reception hosted by the Mass. Legislature on Oct. 18, and a celebration of the anniversary of British General Charles Cornwallis on the 19th.
The dedication ceremony for this new marker will take place as part of a Lafayette250 function “honoring Lafayette’s contributions to American freedom as the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence,” according to the event announcement. Lafayette250 is the first nationwide effort celebrating the semiquincentennial of Lafayette’s historic participation in the American Revolution.
The ceremony is expected to last about half an hour, and will include remarks from people involved in the preparation of the marker, and community leaders and dignitaries, the announcement said.
To find out more about this event, please visit lafayette250.org/events or send an email at inquiries@thelafayettetrail.org.
Thanks for this information. Adding it to the list for the 400th celebration.