Lexington sends a militia detachment to assist with erecting earthworks near the Cambridge segment of the siege lines. The men were under the command of John Bridge Jr. and remained in Cambridge until May 15th.
While there, the detachment participated in a show of force designed to deceive the British army into believing the American troops were much larger than previously thought. On the afternoon of May 13, 1775, General Israel Putnam gathered “all the troops at Cambridge, except those on guard . . . [they] marched into Charlestown. They were 2200 in number, and their line of march was made to extend a mile and a half. They went over Bunker Hill and also over Breed’s Hill . . . they then returned to Cambridge.”
This was not the only military detachment dispatched by Lexington to support the siege. The first, commanded by Captain John Parker, arrived on May 6, 1775, and remained until May 10th. The other arrived at the siege on May 16th under the command of Edmund Munroe and remained outside Boston until May 20, 1775.