Abigail Smith Adams This Is

Abigail Smith Adams This is a guideline and template. Please do not use as a final turn-in paper. The first momentous achievement that must be noted in any biography of Abigail Adams, was her devotion to the women's cause long before many of the personages we read about today. She actually petitioned her husband, John Adams, 2nd President of the United States, to declare in the Declaration of Independence that women would have equal legal status to men.

And she didn't just mention it; she persisted in letter after letter to him as he considered, in 1776, the content of that document. She lost the argument, but not the cause. Needless to say, Abigail Adams was not just your ordinary stay-at-home mom. She was the first "First Lady" to be appointed to a quasi-governmental position in 1775 -- that of an official Massachusetts Colony designee to speak with those women of the Colony who had declared their support for the British.

One might compare her to a modern-day Eleanor Roosevelt or Hillary Clinton in that regard (The National First Ladies Library, n.d.). She wrote hundreds of letters to her husband during his long absences from home in Philadelphia, France and England. He returned the favor, and between them, one can read an early history of our country as they shared not only their love, but strong opinions and comments about ongoing affairs of state, their farm in Massachusetts, their children, and his international travels and dealings with foreign governments.

During her tenure as First lady from 1797-1801, she took an active role acting as the President's stand-in for ceremonial events. She also continued to write and publicize her very strong partisan Federalist opinions, and took a stand with the President regarding some of his major decisions while in office -- and not always in agreement. At one point, some newspapers attacked her and called her "Mrs.

President." Abigail Smith Adams (1744-1818), was the daughter of William Smith, a minister of the Congregational Church, and his wife, Elizabeth Quincy, a blueblood New Englander. It is interesting to note that Abigail's father, grandfather, and great-grandfather had all attended Harvard College. So, her life was filled with a love of literature and learning. She had no formal education but did have access to the extensive libraries of her father and grandfather, and utilized them constantly.

She loved philosophy, theology, Shakespeare, ancient history, and government to name a few (The National First Ladies Library, n.d.). At that time, in the colonies, clergy were the only respected, learned profession. Lawyers were not highly esteemed, and science was in its infancy. It would become an obstacle course for John Adams, a lawyer, to court and marry Abigail due to her father's disdain for the profession.

Actually, Adams had known the Smith family since he was a boy, but had paid little attention to Abigail, nine years his junior. It was only after John Adams had earned respect in his own profession and as an orator that William Smith consented (Adams, n.d.). In 1864, at the age of 19, Abigail and John married; her father presided at the ceremony (Adams, n.d.).

They moved among several homes before settling on a large farm they named "Peacefield." With Adam's absences, Abigail not only helped maintain the farm but managed it and handled the finances along with raising their three sons and two daughters -- three of which she would outlive. After his election, Abigail Adams, despite her "activist" roles, was quite aware of her position as the President's wife and First Lady of the land. She served as hostess to the public.

She greeted guest seated formally, a technique she learned at Buckingham Palace. It was not that she considered herself royalty, but Abigail was a short lady at 5'1" and she felt more comfortable seated. Like all first ladies, she influenced fashions of the day, believing that the mode of dress in that day was too revealing (The National First Ladies Library, n.d.). She was the first Lady to reside in the White House.

Of it, she would write to her sister: "The house is made habitable, but there is not a single apartment finished, and all withinside, except the plastering, has been done since Briesler came. We have not the least fence-yard, or other convenience, without, and the great unfinished audience room I make a drying-room of, to hang up the clothes in. The principal stairs are not up, and will not be this winter" (Vinci, 2004, p.1).

Given the impression she made in Washington D.C., her ceremonial role, her published opinions, and her impact on the ladies' dress of the day, it is difficult to comprehend that she lived in the White House for only four months. She so enjoyed the farm in Massachusetts and the climate there, that she left the capital in 1801, Abigail Adams spent the last 18 years of her life happily, living on Peacefield. It is said she retained.