William Prescott

William Prescott
Statue of Colonel William Prescott in Charlestown, Massachusetts
Born	(1726-02-20)February 20, 1726 Groton, Province of Massachusetts Bay
Died	October 13, 1795(1795-10-13) (aged 69) Pepperell, Massachusetts
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1745–1786
Rank	Colonel
Unit	Continental Army

William Prescott (February 20, 1726 – October 13, 1795) was an American colonel in the Revolutionary War who commanded the rebel forces in the Battle of Bunker Hill. Prescott is known for his order to his soldiers, "Do not fire until you see the whites of their eyes", such that the rebel troops may shoot at the enemy at shorter ranges, and therefore more accurately and lethally, and so conserve their limited stocks of ammunition. It is debated whether Prescott or someone earlier coined this memorable saying.

Prescott was born in Groton, Massachusetts, when East Pepperell was considered Groton, to Benjamin Prescott (1696–1738) and Abigail Oliver Prescott (1697–1765). He married Abigail Hale (1733–1821) on April 13, 1758, and they had one child, also named William. Prescott owned a house in Pepperell, Massachusetts, on Prescott Street.

Prescott served in the provincial militia in King George's War where he served in the 1745 Siege of Louisbourg under William Pepperrell. He may have played a role in the naming of the town of Pepperell, Massachusetts, after his commander when it was separated from Groton in 1753. In 1755, when the French and Indian War widened, he saw action at the Battle of Fort Beausejour. He turned down an offer to join the British Army for his service in that war.

In 1774, when Massachusetts towns began forming militia companies, Prescott was made a colonel commanding the Pepperell company. The alarm that was raised on the evening of April 18, 1775, that British troops were marching on Concord reached Pepperell about 10 a.m. on April 19. Prescott immediately alerted the companies of Pepperell, Hollis, and Groton, and rode toward Concord. The companies arrived too late to participate in the day's battles, but they became part of the small army that laid siege to Boston afterward.