What did John Adams do in his life?
From ages ten to seventeen, Adams experienced an incredible European adventure that prepared him for his later career in the foreign service of his country. In late 1777, John Adams was posted to Europe as a special envoy, and in 1778, John Quincy accompanied him to Paris. Over the next seven years, John Quincy would spend time in Paris, the Netherlands, and St. Petersburg, with shorter visits to England, Sweden, and Prussia. The young Adams experienced his first formal schooling at the Passy Academy outside of Paris where—together with the grandsons of Benjamin Franklin—he studied fencing, dance, music, and art. The Adamses remained in France for a little over a year and then returned home for some three months.
What did John Quincy Adams do in the first year of the war?
In the first year of the war, young John Quincy Adams feared for the life of his father and worried that the British might take his family hostage. Indeed, when John Adams signed his name to the Declaration of Independence, he committed an act of treason against England, an offense punishable by death. For John Quincy, these years were actually the ...
How old was John Adams when he met Louisa?
While traveling in France as a young boy, John met Louisa Catherine, the four-year-old daughter of Joshua Johnson, an American merchant who had married an Englishwoman and was then living in Nantes, France. Years later, in 1797, when Louisa had grown into a pretty 22-year-old woman, she and Adams met again. Now he was a 30-year-old diplomat and the ...
How long did Adams serve as secretary of state?
With the election of James Monroe as President, Adams accepted appointment as secretary of state, serving from 1817 to 1825. During his long tenure as head of the State Department, he compiled an impressive record of diplomatic accomplishments.
What did John Adams dislike about the Johnson family?
In time, he began to court Louisa, dining nightly with the family but always leaving when the girls began to sing after the evening meal—Adams disliked the sound of the female voice in song.
What college did Adams go to?
When he returned to America in 1785, Adams enrolled in Harvard College as an advanced student, completing his studies in two years. After college, Adams studied law and passed the Massachusetts bar exam in the summer of 1790.
How long did John Adams practice law?
From 1790 to 1794, Adams practiced law with little success in Boston. As a new, young lawyer competing for clients with far more established and senior men, he had difficulty attracting paying clients. Not even the fact that his father was now vice president of the United States seemed to help.
How many terms did John Adams serve as Vice President?
From 1785 to 1788 he was minister to the Court of St. James’s, returning to be elected Vice President under George Washington. Adams’ two terms as Vice President were frustrating experiences for a man of his vigor, intellect, and vanity.
Where was John Adams born?
Adams was born in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1735. A Harvard-educated lawyer, he early became identified with the patriot cause; a delegate to the First and Second Continental Congresses, he led in the movement for independence.
What act did President Adams pass to frighten foreign agents out of the country?
It also passed the Alien and Sedition Acts, intended to frighten foreign agents out of the country and to stifle the attacks of Republican editors. President Adams did not call for a declaration of war, but hostilities began at sea.
Where did Adams write his last words?
May none but honest and wise Men ever rule under this roof.”. Adams retired to his farm in Quincy. Here he penned his elaborate letters to Thomas Jefferson. Here on July 4, 1826, he whispered his last words: “Thomas Jefferson survives.”. But Jefferson had died at Monticello a few hours earlier.
When did Adams write his letter to his wife?
On November 1, 1800, just before the election, Adams arrived in the new Capital City to take up his residence in the White House. On his second evening in its damp, unfinished rooms, he wrote his wife, “Before I end my letter, I pray Heaven to bestow the best of Blessings on this House and all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise Men ever rule under this roof.”
Who is John Adams' spouse?
Copyright 2006 by the White House Historical Association. Learn more about John Adams’s spouse, Abigail Smith Adams.
Who was the second president of the United States?
Presidents. John Adams, a remarkable political philosopher, served as the second President of the United States (1797-1801), after serving as the first Vice President under President George Washington. Learned and thoughtful, John Adams was more remarkable as a political philosopher than as a politician. “People and nations are forged in the fires ...
Who was John Adams?
John Adams Jr. (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency, he was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved independence from Great Britain, and he served as ...
What did Adams do at Harvard?
Though his father expected him to be a minister, after his 1755 graduation with an A.B. degree, he taught school temporarily in Worcester, while pondering his permanent vocation. In the next four years, he began to seek prestige, craving "Honour or Reputation" and "more defference from [his] fellows", and was determined to be "a great Man". He decided to become a lawyer to further those ends, writing his father that he found among lawyers "noble and gallant achievements" but, among the clergy, the "pretended sanctity of some absolute dunces". His aspirations conflicted with his Puritanism, though, prompting reservations about his self-described "trumpery" and failure to share the "happiness of [his] fellow men".
Why did Adams retain the cabinet?
The "Hamiltonians who surround him," Jefferson soon remarked, "are only a little less hostile to him than to me." Although aware of Hamilton's influence, Adams was convinced that their retention ensured a smoother succession. Adams maintained the economic programs of Hamilton, who regularly consulted with key cabinet members, especially the powerful Treasury Secretary, Oliver Wolcott Jr. Adams was in other respects quite independent of his cabinet, often making decisions despite opposition from it. Hamilton had grown accustomed to being regularly consulted by Washington. Shortly after Adams was inaugurated, Hamilton sent him a detailed letter filled with policy suggestions for the new administration. Adams dismissively ignored it.
Why did Adams sign the peace treaty?
When he returned in 1795 with a peace treaty on terms unfavorable to the United States, Adams urged Washington to sign it to prevent war. Washington chose to do so, igniting protests and riots. He was accused of surrendering American honor to a tyrannical monarchy and of turning his back on the French Republic.
How many children did John Adams have?
After his father's death in 1761, Adams had inherited a 9. +. 1⁄2 -acre (3.8 ha) farm and a house where they lived until 1783. John and Abigail had six children: Abigail "Nabby" in 1765, future president John Quincy Adams in 1767, Susanna in 1768, Charles in 1770, Thomas in 1772, and Elizabeth in 1777.
What was John Sr.'s father's job?
His mother was from a leading medical family of present-day Brookline, Massachusetts. His father was a deacon in the Congregational Church, a farmer, a cordwainer, and a lieutenant in the militia. John Sr. served as a selectman (town councilman) and supervised the building of schools and roads.
Why was the First Continental Congress formed?
In 1774, at the instigation of John's cousin Samuel Adams, the First Continental Congress was convened in response to the Intolerable Acts, a series of deeply unpopular measures intended to punish Massachusetts, centralize authority in Britain, and prevent rebellion in other colonies.
Who is John Adams?
John Adams. The Print Collector/Print Collector/Getty Images. According to PBS, "His independent, unbending temperament was not ideal for diplomacy, and his diplomatic triumphs were offset by feelings of alienation.".
Where did Andrew Johnson work?
Andrew Johnson started working as a tailor in Greeneville, Tennessee, when he was just 17 years old.
How many terms did Martin Van Buren serve?
Martin Van Buren served two terms in the New York State Senate and was elected New York attorney general in 1815.
How long did Barack Obama work for?
Barack Obama worked as a civil rights lawyer for a Chicago law firm called Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland for four years.
When was Lincoln appointed postmaster?
Abraham Lincoln was appointed postmaster of New Salem, Illinois, in 1833 and served until 1836.
Where did Abraham Lincoln deliver mail?
Abraham Lincoln delivered mail in New Salem, Illinois, and John. F Kennedy was a foreign correspondent for Hearst Newspapers. Take a look at jobs presidents had before they were head of state.
Who was the governor of Massachusetts during the Boston Police Strike?
Calvin Coolidge was elected governor of Massachusetts in 1918 and served during the Boston Police Strike.
Overview
Presidency (1797–1801)
Early life and education
- As the U.S. senator from Massachusetts, he shifted from his nominally Federalist position to support the Democratic-Republican administration of President Thomas Jefferson. He supported the Louisiana Purchase, one of only two Federalists to do so, and the imposition of the Embargo Act of 1807 against foreign trade. In 1808, the Federalist-controlle...
Career before the Revolution
Continental Congress
Adams was sworn into office as the nation's second president on March 4, 1797, by Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth. As president, he followed Washington's lead in using the presidency to exemplify republican values and civic virtue, and his service was free of scandal. Adams spent much of his term at his Massachusetts home Peacefield, preferring the quietness of domestic life to b…
Diplomatic service
John Adams was born on October 30, 1735 (October 19, 1735, Old Style, Julian calendar), to John Adams Sr. and Susanna Boylston. He had two younger brothers: Peter (1738–1823) and Elihu (1741–1775). Adams was born on the family farm in Braintree, Massachusetts. His mother was from a leading medical family of present-day Brookline, Massachusetts. His father was a deacon in the Congregational …
Vice presidency (1789–1797)
Adams rose to prominence leading widespread opposition to the Stamp Act of 1765. The Act was imposed by the British Parliament without consulting the American legislatures. It required payment of a direct tax by the colonies for stamped documents, and was designed to pay for the costs of Britain's war with France. Power of enforcement was given to British vice admiralty courts, rathe…
Post-presidency (1801–1826)
In 1774, at the instigation of John's cousin Samuel Adams, the First Continental Congress was convened in response to the Intolerable Acts, a series of deeply unpopular measures intended to punish Massachusetts, centralize authority in Britain, and prevent rebellion in other colonies. Four delegates were chosen by the Massachusetts legislature, including John Adams, who agreed to attend, d…