John Adams 1735 – 1826

Biography

John Adams was the argumentative conscience of the American Revolution — and its most prolific pen. A Massachusetts lawyer, he helped draft the case for independence, served as a diplomat in Europe during the war, became the nation’s first vice president in 1789, and then its second president from 1797 to 1801. His thousands of letters, especially to his wife and adviser Abigail, remain the most vivid firsthand record of the founding era. He died on July 4, 1826 — the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration, and, famously, the same day as his old friend and rival Thomas Jefferson. He is buried at United First Parish Church in Quincy, Massachusetts. He was also the first American president to live in the White House, moving into the unfinished mansion in 1800. His son John Quincy Adams would later become the sixth president, making them the first father-and-son pair to hold the office.