Abigail SMITH

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Presidential First Lady. She was the wife of second United States President John Adams, and the mother of sixth United States President John Quincy Adams. Born in Weymouth, Massachusetts, on her mother's side she was descended from early prestigious leaders of the colony. Having received a basic education from her mother, Abigail and her sisters were largely self-taught by utilizing the extensive libraries of their father, grandfather and uncle. An avid reader, Abigail formed a strong bond with her third cousin, John Adams, who was a Harvard graduate, and they were married in 1764; three sons and two daughters were born to this union, which was to last more than fifty years. John's traveling as a circuit judge, a delegate to the Continental Congress and an envoy abroad led to long separations, and Abigail's many letters, written just a she spoke, with clarity, told the vivid story of a woman who stayed at home dealing with wartime shortages, running a farm with minimal help and educating her children. Even before the colonies had declared their independence from Britain, Abigail wrote to John to urge him to "Remember the ladies" when drafting the basis of law for the new nation and to not give husbands unlimited power over their wives. Abigail joined John in Paris in 1784 when he was named Ambassador, and she took great interest in the customs of the French Royal Court. When her husband became the first Vice President of the United States, she and the President's wife, Martha Washington, became good friends. Abigail was of great assistance in the official entertaining because of the experience she had gained from the courts and society abroad. When John Adams was elected President, she managed to continue a formal pattern of entertaining in spite of the primitive conditions of the "President's House" (now known as the White House), which was still under construction. After John Adams's presidential term ended in 1801, they retired to Quincy, Massachusetts and enjoyed seventeen years of companionship that they had longed for during the years of public life. Abigail's correspondence is feted for exhibiting strong leadership of Women's Rights.

Abigail married Pres. John ADAMS, Jr. on 25 Oct 1764 in Weymouth, Massachusetts. John (son of John ADAMS and Susanna BOYLSTON) was born on 19 Oct 1735 in Braintree, Norfolk County, Massachusetts; died on 04 Jul 1826 in Quincy, Massachusetts; was buried in Quincy Congregational Church, Quincy Massachusetts. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Death: 15 Aug 1813

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Nabby Adams Smith was the eldest child and only surviving daughter of John and Abigail Adams and the sister of John Quincy Adams. She married William Stephens Smith in London on June 12, 1786 while her parents were in residence there but the marriage was not a happy one. Abandoned on numerous occasions while her husband went "seeking his fortune", Nabby showed herself to be a true child of her parents, strong-willed, uncomplaining and able to keep herself and her children together under one roof, earning the unstinting respect of John and Abigail and of John Quincy, who loved her dearly ... one of the few people he did love dearly.

In October of 1811, Nabby discovered a lump in her breast and a mastectomy was performed without any anesthesia. Her parents were holding her hands during the brutal surgery and, according to John, she never cried out once. After recuperating at the Adams homestead in Quincy, she returned to her dreary life in New York. But the cancer proved too much for even Nabby's resilient spirit and, in the summer of 1813, in agony, she returned to her parents in Quincy and died in The Old Homestead. The elderly John Adams grieved in a letter to his old friend Thomas Jefferson: "Your friend, my only Daughter, expired, Yesterday Morning .... in the 49th Year of her age, 46 of which She was the healthiest and firmest of Us all: Since which, She has been a monument to Suffering and to Patience." It has been said that neither John nor Abigail ever truly recovered from her death.

Cause of death: Breast cancer



Posted on find A Grave created by: Kathleen

Family/Spouse: Col. William Stephens SMITH. William (son of John SMITH and Margaret STEPHENS) was born on 08 Nov 1755 in Long Island City, Queens, New York, USA; died on 10 Jun 1816 in Lebanon, Madison Co., New York; was buried in Sherburne West Hill Cemetery, Sherburne, Chenango Co., New York. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Fact: 6th President of the United States, Vice President: John C. Calhoun

John married Louisa Catherine JOHNSON on 26 Jul 1797 in London, London, England. Louisa was born on 12 Feb 1775 in London, London, England; died on 15 May 1852 in Washington, DC; was buried in Quincy, Massachusetts. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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2nd son of the second President of the United States, John Adams, and his wife Abigail Smith Adams. Charles' early life was adventuresome, as he traveled abroad with his father and older brother John Quincy, even returning on his own and becoming "lost" for a period of time. He was trained as lawyer, attending Harvard, and set up practice in New York City. He married Sarah Smith, the sister of his brother in law, William Smith, who had married Abigail "Nabby" Adams. He became involved in dubious business dealings, and many written articles question various aspects of his life, relationships, and dealings. As with others in the family, he relied upon alcohol to divert himself, eventually succumbing to its effects. He and Sarah had two daughters, Susannah and Abigail. Charles father ahborred Charles' lifestyle and its affects, and near the end of Charles' life, wrote him off as unworthy of his attention, love and respect. Charles died in despair at the young age of 30. Estranged from his family due to his father's opinions, he was not allowed to be buried in the family plot, as it was preferred that he simply be put to the past and forgotten. Another Find-A-Grave Memorial indicates burial at the family plot in the Hancock Cemetery in Quincy, MA, which is incorrect. An account of his death at the time [ W. W. (Wesley Washington) Pasko. Old New York : a journal relating to the history and antiquities of New York City] indicates that he was buried on 2 Dec 1800, with full military honors, in the "Old Presbyterian Burial Ground". This is assumed to be the original location of the First Presbyterian Church at 5 Wall Street, NYC. The church was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1835, and remains were re-interred at other locations, many being moved to Green-Wood Cemetery. His present burial site is unknown, though we continue to search so that he may be properly remembered.

Bio by: Peter Jennings Talbot

Charles married Sarah SMITH on 29 Aug 1795. Sarah (daughter of John SMITH and Margaret STEPHENS) was born on 06 Nov 1769 in New York, USA; died on 08 Aug 1828 in Utica, Oneida Co., New York; was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Utica, Oneida Co, New York. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Thomas married Ann HARROD on 16 May 1805. Ann was born about 1776 in Haverhill, Massachusetts; died on 3 Sep 1846 in Quincy, Massachusetts. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]