OPINION: A Piece of Medfield History Erased

OPINION...

"What would the ghosts of Medfield's past and Medfield's future say about the Clark Tavern that is no longer?

If the Tavern filled with revolutionary patriots was not there to deter British soldiers, they may have marched straight through to New York and destroyed our young democracy by crushing Washington's army.

Nathan Hale may not have boldly said to his executioner, "my only regret is that I only have one life to give for my country" because he was never inspired by his fellow patriots at the Clark Tavern...it was not there.

If the Clark Tavern was never there, Medfield may never have grown as a town because travelers would not have had a place to rest in Medfield.

So any time you have a chance to defend the old buildings that helped us build our democracy and our imperfect union, vigorously defend them with all your heart as our future depends on it. Or one day it may be said the United States, like the Clark Tavern, was never there.

A challenge to the new owners of the Clark Tavern: To rebuild on a foundation that Nathan Hale would be proud of and recognize this spot marked in history as the place he stayed at contemplating and worrying about the success of a new type of government run by the people and not a wealthy King.

Don't it always seem to go,

That you don't know what you've got, til its gone,

They paved history,

And put up a parking lot?"

Richard Judge, Juniper Lane, Medfield