Then and Now
History: Revolutionary War Doctor John Hart
Of the many vibrant figures striding through the pages of Wakefield's history, one of the most colorful was John Hart, who was popularly known at one time as “the King.”
Born in 1752 in Ipswich, Massachusetts, John Hart was the son of John Hart, a lawyer and renowned musician. Dr. John Hart’s mother, Mary Knowlton, was the daughter of Captain Abraham Knowlton, an Ipswich “joiner” or cabinetmaker of great skill. Through her mother, Mary Knowlton was a direct descendant of one of our town’s first settlers Francis Smith. John Hart studied medicine in Ipswich and in 1771 moved to what is now Bath, Maine to begin his own practice. When the Revolutionary War broke out, Dr. Hart took the colonial side and joined the Revolutionary Army under the charge of Colonel Prescott just before the battle of Bunker Hill. When Col. Prescott’s regiment was disbanded in 1776, Dr. Hart joined the Second Massachusetts Regiment …
