Abigail Adams

It was an inauspicious beginning to a love story. John and Abigail met in the parlor of Pastor Smith’s home in Weymouth, MA. John was 24 and Abigail 15. Abigail’s mom regarded John as a country lawyer who lacked appropriate manners. John’s assessment of Abigail and her sisters was equally harsh. They were “not fond, not frank, not candid.” Yet John continued to visit the Smith home where Abigail lived, and their opinions of each other changed. They married three years later in the same parlor and rode off together on a horse to their new home. John and Abigail Adams (1744-1818) were inseparable in spirit, even though they spent considerable time apart in the cause of the American Revolution. They wrote letters–1160 of which are preserved for us to read. When John Adams was elected president, Abigail functioned as his trusted advisor and confidante. People called her Mrs. President. She was not only the wife of America’s second president, but was also mother to America’s sixth president, John Quincy Adams. Their letters display a loving, caring relationship. John often addressed Abigail with the salutation “Miss Adorable.” Two favorite quotes from Abigail’s letters: “If particular care and attention is not paid to the Ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion” and “Do not put unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could.” Kaboom!  She included a prayer in one of her letters about John’s election as president: