Evacuation Day — Stanley Harris

"Actually, George Washington is pretty cool." That's what Charles Miller thinks of the new commander of the American Continental army. In 1776, twelve year-old boys didn't say someone was cool. But Charles isn't from 1776. He lives in 2007 and has traveled back in time to help his friend Ben Sampson free his father from a British prison in Boston before the Redcoats evacuate the city. If they fail, Ben's father, Benjamin Senior, will be on a prison ship bound for Nova Scotia in two days. Charles and Ben travel to Cambridge, where they meet General Washington and the mysterious Captain Tallmadge, Washington's spy chief, who helps them plan to enter British-occupied Boston. Their mission is to find Emmy, Ben's sister, to rescue Benjamin, and to determine when the British will evacuate the city. Soon after they arrive in Boston the boys are saved from being captured by the Redcoats by Aaron, the son of Crispus Attucks, a former slave who was killed at the Boston Massacre. With the help of 2007 technology, Charles, Ben, Emmy and Aaron execute a daring rescue of Benjamin from a British jail. During their escape, Ben's father is shot, and although they reach Cambridge successfully, the wound has become infected. Doctor John Warren, a surgeon with the Continental army and a founder of the Harvard Medical School, insists that Benjamin's leg must be amputated to save his life. When Ben's father refuses, Charles, without revealing where he is from, convinces Dr. Warren to follow modern medical practices to cure the infection. Charles, Ben, Emmy and Aaron watch the British leave Boston from Dorchester Heights with Colonel Henry Knox who commands the artillery that forced the evacuation. Emmy prevents a British spy from blowing up the fortifications and receives a personal commendation and medal from General Washington. Just before Charles returns to 2007, Captain Tallmadge asks the young people if they again would be willing to serve the American cause. They answer with a resounding yes.