A family whose accomplishments changed the course of history remains not only relevant today, but worth memorializing. They lived a life of service to God, our nation and their family, core values that resonate today. There is currently no memorial to John Adams, John Quincy Adams and their family in Washington. Congress authorized the Adams Memorial Commission to fix this oversight. I serve as the chair of the commission. With the 250th Anniversary of our nation barely a year away, now is the time for an Adams Memorial.
Their influence predates the Revolutionary War. John Adams rose to prominence in 1770, when he defended eight British soldiers who were charged with murder after they fired into a group of Bostonians, killing five and wounding six others. As a 34-year-old lawyer, Adams was aware that public sentiment was against him, but he was convinced that everyone had a right to a fair trial. The result was that six of the soldiers were acquitted and two were found guilty of manslaughter.
Adams went on to play pivotal roles during the American Revolution. Without him and his wife, Abigail, who was his closest confidante, we might have never left the British Empire. He emerged as an eloquent advocate for independence. He served in the First and Second Continental Congresses – the legislative bodies that represented the colonies and the United States during the Revolutionary War – and nominated George Washington to serve as commander in chief.
He served on the committee that drafted the Declaration of Independence and recommended that Thomas Jefferson write the draft. In 1783, Adams helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris, which ended the Revolutionary War and recognized the United States as an independent nation; six years later, he became the nation's first vice president under George Washington. He drafted the Massachusetts Constitution, which became the template for our nation’s Constitution.
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He was sworn in as our nation’s second president on March 4, 1797, and later that year created the Navy. His biggest accomplishment as president was keeping us out of war with France. When he was defeated, he set the precedent for the peaceful transfer of power to another political party.
His son, John Quincy Adams, was sworn in as president on March 4, 1825.
The Adams family holds a unique distinction in American history as the first father and son to both serve as president of the United States. John and John Quincy Adams were anti-slavery and were the only two presidents out of the first seven who did not own slaves. Their presidencies bookended a critical transitional period in the nation's development.
John Quincy Adams's path to the presidency was shaped significantly by his parents. At 11 years of age, he began accompanying his father on diplomatic missions to Europe, where he received a first-class international education and developed fluency in multiple languages. This prepared him for a diplomatic career that included service as minister to the Netherlands, Prussia, Russia and Great Britain. In 1814, he negotiated the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812 with Great Britain.
As secretary of state under President James Monroe, John Quincy orchestrated the acquisition of Florida and was the principal author of the Monroe Doctrine, which declared the Western Hemisphere closed to further European colonization. These achievements paved his way to the presidency in 1825 through a contentious election decided by the House of Representatives.
Like his father, he served only one term and was defeated by Andrew Jackson in 1828. After his presidency, John Quincy made an enormous difference to our country as a member of Congress, where he served for 17 years until his death. During that time, he led the fight against the “gag rule,” which prevented the Congress from discussing slavery. In 1841, he successfully argued before the U.S. Supreme Court the Amistad case, which freed Africans enslaved aboard a Spanish ship.
During the 30th Congress, he and Abraham Lincoln served together until Quincy Adams died in 1848.
The family’s influence had spanned the Revolutionary War and westward expansion and set the stage for the national conversation about slavery.
During the Civil War, John Quincy’s son, Charles Francis Adams, served as minister to Great Britain, and kept the British out of the Civil War, which could have changed the course of history.
Others in the Adams family were also dedicated to serving our nation. Abigail Adams, John's wife and John Quincy's mother, was herself a significant political thinker whose advocacy for women's rights and education helped shape both men's world views. She served as her husband’s chief of staff while he was president and was a keen businesswoman.
Without this great family, our country might not have been born; might not have survived the Civil War. It is time we recognize their lives of service to our nation with an Adams Memorial in Washington.
Jackie Cushman serves as the Chair of the Adams Memorial Commission and the President of the Adams Memorial Foundation.
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