The Adams Children |
|
Jennifer W. |
|
|
|
Everyone knows who John Adams was. As you already know he was the second president of the United States, he was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives, he was the father of our sixth president, John Quincy Adams, and he was born right around the corner in Braintree, MA in 1735. Does anyone really know that much about his children besides John Quincy? As you may or may not know John Adams actually had four other children. Adams' children from oldest to youngest were Abigail "Nabby", John Quincy, Susanna, Charles, and Thomas Boylston. Here is some information about these four fascinating Adams offspring. Abigail Adams (1765-1813): Abigail was born in 1765 and was always referred to as "Nabby." She was named after her mother, Abigail Smith Adams. As the first child Nabby was given a great amount of attention. Her father praised her for her "remarkable Modesty, Discretion, and Reserve." However, neighbors thought she was stuck-up. By the time Nabby was seventeen, her mother was happy about how mature her daughter was, but also complained that she was too silent. She worried that Nabby might be stuck-up as well. Nabby confessed to her cousin that she longed to communicate more with other people. She was supposed to go to Europe to be with her father, but this was postponed. While postponed, she fell in love with an attorney named Royall Tyler. John Adams thought Nabby was too young to fall in love, but eventually accepted it. In June 1784 Nabby and Abigail met with John and John Quincy in London and traveled to France. Nabby and Tyler had a long-distance relationship while she was in Europe. For about a year of being away from each other the relationship was still strong, but after this things fell apart. In 1786 Nabby rushed into a marriage with Colonel William Stephens Smith, who was ten years her elder. He had all the qualities that John did not like, but Abigail like him. Nabby had her first child, who was a boy, in April 1787. Nabby had two more sons, but the latter died quickly after birth, and she also had a girl. The family moved to New York where Colonel Smith hoped to become successful in politics. He failed in this and left Nabby and the children alone for long intervals. Nabby liked Boston better than New York. Nabby's aunt took care of the children to get them away from Colonel Smith's bad influence. Their marriage was not a good one. Smith was put in jail because of his numerous debts. Nabby always stood by Smith because of her nice personality and his charm. Nabby went with her husband to jail and they lived in a cottage on the prison grounds. Nabby died in the presence of the Adams family of breast cancer on August 15,1813. Susanna Adams (1768-1170): Susanna did not have a very long life. She was born in the end of 1768 and died in the beginning of 1770. Susanna was named after her paternal grandmother. Charles Adams (1770-1800): Charles was born in1770. Charles was extremely close to his mother as a child. In November 1779, his father took him and his brother, John Quincy, to France, which his mother worried about. Charles was very upset at this matter and cried all the time. He suffered from nostalgia in Europe and returned home by himself in 1781. Charles was loved by everyone because of "his charm and his very delicate temperament." (p. 44, Descent from Glory). Charles went to Harvard and was a good student. However, he ran a rebellion on campus and began to excessively drink. Charles' parents were worried and upset about his alcoholism, irresponsibility, his misconduct at Harvard, and about who he hung around with. In 1789, Charles left Harvard to stay in New York with his parents to start his career as a lawyer. In November 1790, Adams and his family left New York and moved to Philadelphia because the federal capital was moved there. His parents tried to keep in touch with Charles, still in New York, through letter, but he never wrote about personal matters and ignored his family's questions. He was very caught up in New York politics. Smith persuaded Charles to invest John Quincy's $4,000, but Charles misused the money and felt badly about it. The Adams did not get along with Colonel Smith. Thus, it was not good when Charles fell in love with Smith's daughter, Sally. They married in 1795 and had two daughters. When Charles began to deteriorate rapidly, he did not receive much sympathy from his father. Charles died on December 1, 1800. Nobody talked much about Charles after his death because they wanted to forget about him. He was not allowed to be buried in the family vault. Thomas Boylston Adams (1172-1832): Thomas was born in 1772 and was named after his ancestor. As a child he was a "very shy...slow, clumsy, unsure" (p.46, Descent from Glory) boy. When he was three he suffered from cholera. When Thomas was twelve he went to live with his Aunt and Uncle Shaw in Haverhill. He liked it there because he felt more relaxed. In 1786 Thomas went to Harvard. His family thought he was too immature for college. He was very dependent on John Quincy and was popular with women. Thomas always danced with John Quincy's wife, Louisa, and even wrote her letters. People liked Thomas for his charm and fun personality. However, he had no confidence and did not have much that he liked about himself. He graduated from Harvard in 1790 and was urged by his parents to become a lawyer like his brothers. John Quincy always said that Thomas did not have the skills to be a lawyer. Thomas did not want to be a lawyer and longed to go back to western New York and pursue a career there. His parents told him he would not be successful there. There was tension because of the disagreement with his parents about his career. He became John Quincy's secretary and the two went to Europe where Thomas looked for a career, but John Quincy was very overpowering. Thomas was always in bad health and suffered from rheumatism and depression. He was not financially dependent and had to live with and get money from his parents. Thomas married Ann Harrod, who was known as Nancy on May 16,1805. They had seven children. Thomas' relationship with John Quincy was going down hill due to their differences. Thomas gambled and drank excessively. When Thomas ran away and then returned, he and his brother rekindled. John Quincy took care of Thomas' debts. Thomas was not allowed to be at the death of his mother and was very upset because of this. He died on March 12,1832 and was buried in the family vault. I hope you have learned something new about the Adams by reading this.
Bober, Natalie S. Abigail Adams Witness to a Revolution.
New York, NY: Aladdin Paperbacks, Nagel, Paul C. Descent from Glory Four Generations
of the John Adams Family. Cambridge, |
|
|
|