ABSTRACT
On Tuesday, March 13, the Boston town meeting chose James Bowdoin, Joseph Warren, and Samuel Pemberton to “find out who those Persons are that were the Perpetrators of the horred Murders and Massacres done and committed in King Street.” Charged with taking “such Examinations and Depositions as they can procure,” they in turn entrusted that task to justices of the peace, who apparently had already begun taking statements. The town meeting acted on its own, not waiting for approval from Hutchinson or the General Court. Town leaders believed that time was of the essence—that they had to act quickly to win the battle for public opinion well in advance of anything that might be determined in court. By the time the justices of the peace began their work the 14th Regiment had left to join the 29th Regiment at Castle William.
