Attucks, << AT uhks, >> Crispus (1723?-1770), was a leader of the patriot crowd that British troops fired upon in the so-called “Boston Massacre” of 1770. The British had stationed four regiments in Boston in 1768. On March 5, 1770, about 400 Bostonians surrounded a detachment of British troops and goaded them into firing. Attucks and two other men were killed instantly. Two others died later of wounds. See Boston Massacre .
Little is known of Attucks, but several historians believe he had been born into slavery and later escaped. He was probably of mixed Black and white descent. In 1888, Boston erected a monument to honor those who died in the incident.
