Abigail Adams

Class Date: October 2nd

Location: Your couch! See your weekly e-mail for Zoom link!

Give Me Liberty!

As a new nation, the United States worked to create a new form of government. After George Washington finished his two terms as President, John Adams took up the reigns of government. While Martha Washington set the standard as the first First Lady, Abigail Adams was the second to take up the mantle. Before we talk about her life, let’s see what else was going on at the time:

1765 - Coverture traditions are encouraged

Sir William Blackstone published Commentaries on the Laws of England that encouraged colonials to follow the tradition of “coverture” - the idea that once married, a woman’s property belongs to her husband and she ceases to have any legal rights. Coverture was brought over by British colonists, who practiced English Common Law, which also removed the legal rights of married women.

1773 - Phillis Wheatley published her poetry

Phillis publishes Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral, in London, England. Her book also becomes popular in the colonies, though many struggle with the clear illustration that enslaved African Americans have souls, minds, and thus deserve human treatment and liberty.

1775 - Second Continental convenes

Shots fired at Lexington and Concord changed the tenor of colonial meetings. Whereas there was general political unrest before, now there was war. The Congress agreed to the creation of a Continental Army under the supreme command of George Washington of Virginia. To pay soldiers, the Congress authorized the printing of money, and they appointed a standing committee to conduct foreign relations, should they need to ask for foreign help.

At this point, though governing, they were still not seeking independence from Britain. In July, they approved the Olive Branch Petition to appeal to King George III and seek a peaceful resolution. The King rejected this petition, declared them to be in a state of rebellion, and ordered Hessian mercenaries to bring the colonists in line.

1776 (January) - Common Sense is published

At the end of 1775, even with the introduction of the Hessian mercenaries, not everyone was clamoring to separate from the Crown. Then Thomas Paine published his pamphlet, arguing in clear, moral and political terms, that independence should be the goal. ‘Common Sense’ is widely considered to be one of the most influential publications in American history and certainly a major factor in the writing of the Declaration of Independence.

- July 4th, 1776 - The Declaration of Independence is adopted

56 men affixed their signatures to the Declaration of Independence, moving towards a new nation. (They officially signed the version on parchment on August 2nd, but they officially adopted the document on July 4th).

February, 1777 - Washington orders the mass inoculation of the Continental Army

Variola, a small pox virus, was ravaging the Continental Troops, to the point that BEnedict Arnold, Benjamin Franklin, and Washington all feared it would be the army’s ultimate downfall. Europeans had been infecting individuals with less-deadly forms of the disease, so most British troops were immune, giving them an enormous advantage. Though an unpopular decision, Washington committed to the policy of mass inoculation and ordered commanding officers to oversee the operation. Smallpox raged throughout the war, ravaging Native American and Black populations, but failed to incapacitate a single Continental regiment.

1777 - The Articles of Confederation

Stemming from wartime urgency and a strong fear of a central authority, the Articles were written to provide a loose government structure for a fledgling nation. They were not ratified until 1781. Under the articles, the states remained sovereign, with a Congress serving as the last resort on appeal of disputes. Congress was able to make treaties and alliances, maintain armed forces, and coin money on behalf of the “United States of America”. However, the Congress could not impose taxes or regulate commerce. Those issues would lead to the Constitutional Convention in 1787.

1777 - Vermont Constitution written

Vermont becomes the first to provide for universal male suffrage (for white men), and outlaws slavery

1777 - Washington camps at Valley Forge

Martha Washington visits her husband as he camps at Valley Forge with the Continental Army. The Army endures a harsh winter, 20 miles from British-occupied Philadelphia. Women in the camp help the Army with domestic shores and nursing duties.

1789 - George Washington is inaugurated as the first president

Washington had been chosen unanimously by electors, with John Adams as his Vice President. There was no direct presidential election at the time. Washington was elected in February and inaugurated in New York City in April. In September of the same year, the Federal Judiciary Act was passed to create the Supreme Court.

1789 - 1794 - Martha Dandridge Custis Washington

The very first ‘First Lady’ set the standard for the role of the spouse in the White House. She set precedent by serving as the national hostess and was beloved by many for spending winters in the military camps with her husband during the American Revolution. Though she and George never lived in the White House as we know it today, she hosted many dinners with dignitaries and officials, welcoming all she could to ‘the people’s house’.

1791 - Bill of Rights ratified

Many new Americans were reluctant or outright refused to support the Constitution of the United States, especially without more explicit rights outlined. To smooth the way toward more support, Madison introduced a list of amendments in June of 1789 and pushed relentlessly to have them passed. To read more about the Bill of Rights, its passage and history, click here: https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/bill-of-rights/how-did-it-happen

1792 - A Vindication of the Rights of Woman published

British writer and women’s rights advocate Mary Wollstonecraft published “A Vindication of the Right of Woman: with Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects”. She argued that women were able and should receive an education, rather than simply learn how to keep a home. Her book was very popular among feminists of the day, including American women who would later reference her work at the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention and their publication of the Declaration of Sentiments.

1792 - Construction on the White House began

After moving the capital city from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C., President Washington began working with Pierre Charles L’Enfant to plan the city, leaving room for a “President’s Palace”. Though L’Enfant originally planned a structure 4 times the size of the present White House, the scaled back version was still the largest house in the United States. The total cost of building was $232,372 (just over $5.5 million in today’s dollars). To read more fun facts about the White House, click here: https://www.whitehousehistory.org/construction-of-the-white-house

1791 - The First Bank of the United States is chartered

The bank is chartered in Philadelphia for 20 years by Congress, part of an overall federal fiscal policy. A federal mint and excise taxes were also established.

1793 - Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette executed in France

Both Louis and Marie were executed after they had been imprisoned for some years for treason. To read more about the French Revolution and abolishment of the monarchy, click here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/king-louis-xvi-executed

That is where our timeline leaves us for this week! Tune in this week to learn about one of our first leading ladies, Abigail Adams!

Recommended Reading

To read more about this topic, here are some great books to get you started:

For kids:

Abigail Adams Jean Brown Wagoner

Perfect for 8-12 year olds, this book uses simple language that beginning readers can understand. This lively, inspiring, and believable biography looks at the childhood of Abigail Adams. Illustrated throughout.

Who Was Abigail Adams? by True Kelley

Abigail Adams was a strong woman far ahead of her time. She urged her husband, President John Adams, to "remember the ladies" and despite having no formal education herself, she later advocated for equal education in public schools for both boys and girls. She was also the first First Lady to live in the White House! This biography tells the story of Abigail Adams and her role in America's Revolutionary War period.

For adults:

My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams by Abigail and John Adams

In 1762, John Adams penned a flirtatious note to “Miss Adorable,” the 17-year-old Abigail Smith. In 1801, Abigail wrote to wish her husband John a safe journey as he headed home to Quincy after serving as president of the nation he helped create. The letters that span these nearly forty years form the most significant correspondence―and reveal one of the most intriguing and inspiring partnerships―in American history.

As a pivotal player in the American Revolution and the early republic, John had a front-row seat at critical moments in the creation of the United States, from the drafting of the Declaration of Independence to negotiating peace with Great Britain to serving as the first vice president and second president under the U.S. Constitution. Separated more often than they were together during this founding era, John and Abigail shared their lives through letters that each addressed to “My Dearest Friend,” debating ideas and commenting on current events while attending to the concerns of raising their children (including a future president).

Full of keen observations and articulate commentary on world events, these letters are also remarkably intimate. This new collection―including some letters never before published―invites readers to experience the founding of a nation and the partnership of two strong individuals, in their own words. This is history at its most authentic and most engaging.

The Unexpected Abigail Adams: A Woman ‘Not Apt to Be Intimidated’ by John L. Smith, Jr.

Abigail Adams, wife of John Adams, was an eyewitness to America’s founding, and helped guide the new nation through her observations and advice to her famously prickly husband, who cherished her. She met many important and significant figures of the period: George Washington and his wife Martha, Thomas Jefferson, Sally Hemings, Benjamin Franklin, Henry Knox, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, John Jay, Marquis de Lafayette, John Paul Jones, Alexander Hamilton, James Monroe, artist Patience Wright, and even King George III and Queen Charlotte of England, as well as King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette of France. In The Unexpected Abigail Adams: A Woman “Not Apt to Be Intimidated”, writer and researcher John L. Smith, Jr., draws on more than two thousand letters of Abigail’s spanning from the 1760s to her death in 1818, interweaving Abigail’s colorful correspondence—some of which has not appeared in print before—with a contextual narrative. In this priceless documentation of one of the most important periods of world history she comments on the varied personalities she encountered and, while her husband was away from home serving in the Continental Congresses and as a diplomatic envoy in Europe, she wrote him frequently about their home in Massachusetts, their family, national and local politics, and, during the early years of the war, crucial information concerning revolutionary activities around Boston. She was an advocate for education for women, a shrewd businesswoman, and had an unrivaled political acumen. Her strength in the face of disease, loss of children, and other hardships, and her poignant, beautiful, and often philosophical commentary, advice, and predictions allow Abigail to demonstrate her fully modern sensibilities. This major biography of Abigail, the first in over ten years, is a riveting, revealing portrait of a remarkable woman that readers will find very relatable—and one that transforms how she is perceived.

Works Cited

https://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.html

https://www.ushistory.org/us/9f.asp

https://www.constitutionfacts.com/us-declaration-of-independence/the-five-riders/

https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/slavery-colonial-georgia

https://www.nps.gov/inde/learn/historyculture/stories-libertybell.htm

https://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/GW&smallpoxinoculation.html

https://www.ushistory.org/us/2f.asp

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