Captain David Brown was the leader of the Concord Minutemen. He had trained and drilled his company (about forty men) within sight of the North Bridge. His home was very nearby.
Captain Brown and his wife Abigail Munroe (no doubt related to Will Munroe of Munroe Tavern, Lexington) had nine children on April 19th, the youngest was two. They would have another child in ’76.
When they were gathered on Punkatasset Hill, overlooking the North Bridge, Brown’s men had taken up their position on the left of the front line. This arrangement would have put Isaac Davis and his Minute Men in the rear as the line went down the hill.
Colonel Barrett asked Captain Brown if he would lead the attack. Brown said he would rather not. So Barrett asked the same question of Captain Isaac Davis. His response rings in history: “I have not a man who is afraid to go.” 
Now, to be fair, Davis’s company was better equipped than Brown’s. Each of Davis’s men had a bayonet affixed to his musket. They were exceptionally well trained. And we won’t ever know why Brown hesitated. But knowing how the charge turned out for Captain Davis, is it any wonder that Brown was never able to cross that bridge again without thinking of that day? (See In a Nutshell)
Captain Brown went on from that day to lead an exemplary career in the Continental Army. As a member of the Committee of Correspondence for Concord, he was a delegate to the state conventions in ’79. He ran for state senate in ’89 but lost the election. He is buried in the Old Hill Burying Ground Cemetery next to two of his sons. His home, that witnessed the days events was torn down in 1865.