Paul Revere Bell Tolls for Victims of Marathon Bombing

Nearly 240 years ago, Paul Revere made his famous ride, marking a significant moment in the history of Boston and what would become the United States of America.

On Monday, Revere indirectly marked another significant moment for Boston, the state and the country.

At 2:51 p.m., the bell in the tower of First Parish Weston, a bell forged by Paul Revere and purchased by First Parish Weston 1801, tolled in remembrance of the lives lost and people injured as a result of the April 15 Boston Marathon bombings.

Rev. Thomas D. Wintle, senior minister at First Parish, joined with bell ringers throughout the state in marking the end of a moment of silence with the tolling of church bells. 

The moment of silence took place at 2:50 p.m., the time that, one week prior, two bombs exploded at the finish line of the 117th Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring more than 170 others.

Martin Richard, 8; Krystle Campbell, 29, and Lingzi Lu, 23, perished in the bombings. MIT security officer Sean Collier, 26, then died at the hand of the suspected bombers while sitting in his car on the university’s campus Thursday night. 

“Mayor Thomas M. Menino, Governor Deval L. Patrick and One Fund Boston are calling upon Boston and all communities across the Commonwealth to join together in a Moment of Silence Monday afternoon, exactly one week following the Boston Marathon bombings," a statement from Menino’s office reads.

In Weston, bells throughout town tolled at 2:51 p.m., including the one hanging in the belfry at First Parish.