“Thank you for checking out this post, which features another installment of ‘Hail to the Chief.”
“In this post, you will see places I’ve visited which have highlighted the life of our sixth President.”
“The first son of a President to become a President – John Quincy Adams.”
JOHN QUINCY ADAMS BIRTHPLACE – Built in 1717, this house was located in Braintree, Massachusetts (now Quincy) and was purchased in 1744 by Deacon John Adams, Sr. He gave the house to his son, John, in 1761.
“John and Abigail Adams lived in this home from 1764 to 1783; during which time son John Quincy was born on July 11, 1767.”
“In 1803, John Quincy purchased this house, along with the birthplace of his father, which was located only 75 feet away.”
“John Quincy Adams was born in an upstairs bedroom of this farmhouse on July 11, 1767. After John Quincy’s marriage to Louisa Catherine in 1797, the couple lived in this home with their three young sons during the summers of 1806 and 1808.”
“During my first visit in 2017, photography was prohibited inside the home. But six years later, the rule was dropped. Let’s go inside, shall we, and see the birthplace of John Quincy Adams.”
“As I stood on the living room floor, I envisioned John Quincy and Louisa Catherine’s three young sons, George Washington Adams, John Adams II, and Charles Francis Adams, playing in this room.”
“One aspect I loved the most about this home was the floorboards were original. That’s right, John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Abigail Adams, and Louisa Catherine Adams all walked on that same floor I was standing on.”
“Historical interpreter Michael Lepaige met us in John Adams’ law office and he talked about the home in 1774. While Lepaige never mentioned John Quincy Adams, it’s likely the seven-year-old watched his father at work in this room.”
ABIGAIL ADAMS CAIRN – Located on Penn’s Hill in Quincy, Massachusetts, the cairn was erected on June 17, 1896, which was the 121st anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill.
“I’m standing on, or very near, the spot where Abigail Adams stood with her son, John Quincy, on June 17, 1775 and watched the Battle of Bunker Hill unfold over the horizon in the distance.”
“Due to the haze caused by out-of-control Canadian wildfires, we had a difficult time seeing the Boston skyline from the same vantage point Abigail and John Quincy had in 1775.”
“I’m standing on the same boulders where Abigail and John Quincy Adams stood on June 17, 1775 as they watched the smoke rise into the air over Boston during the Battle of Bunker Hill.”
“Monuments come and go over the years, but the boulders on top of Penn’s Hill have been in the same place since the Ice Age.”
LOUISA CATHERINE JOHNSON – Born in London, England, 22-year-old Louisa Johnson married John Quincy Adams, age 30, on July 26, 1797 in the parish church of All Hallows-by-the-Tower on Tower Hill near London. The couple sailed to Lisbon for their honeymoon, which was a gift from her father.
“During James Madison’s administration, John Quincy Adams served as Ambassador to Russia and helped negotiate the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812.In December 1823, Secretary of State Adams provided President James Monroe with his ideas that became the basis for the historic Monroe Doctrine.”
PEACEFIELD – Built in 1731, John and Abigail Adams bought this house in 1787 while they lived in London. They moved into the home in 1788. The ‘Old House’ remained in the Adams’ family until it was given to the United States in 1946. John Quincy and his wife Louisa owned the home after his parent’s deaths.
“John Quincy Adams resided at Peacefieldon and off throughout his life.”
“John Quincy married Louisa Catherine Johnson shortly after his dad became President. Neither John nor Abigail liked her, at least at first.When John Quincy brought his wife to Peacefield for the first time, Louisa said of the home: “It’s like something out of Noah’s Ark.”
“Despite occasional differences, Louisa gained a deep respect for her mother-in-law Abigail Adams. As a matter of fact, Louisa later described Abigail as “the guiding planet round which we all revolved.”
“John Quincy Adams had requested the Stone Library be built next to Peacefield. The library was finally constructed by John Quincy’s son Charles, a Peacefield resident, but not until after his father and grandfather had died.”
“John Adams finally welcomed Louisa into the family, but they did not meet for several years.”
UNITED FIRST PARISH CHURCH – Located in Quincy, Massachusetts, the ‘Church of the Presidents’ was built in 1828 – two years after the death of John Adams. His son John Quincy Adams, along with his family, worshipped in this church during their time in Massachusetts.
“When I first walked inside the church, I could feel the presence of John Quincy and Louisa Catherine Adams there. It was as though I could see them seated in the family pew on the right side of the aisle.”
“I’m in Pew 54 and standing in the butt prints of John Quincy Adams.”
“Even though John Quincy Adams was only 5’ 7” tall, I bet he had a better view from their pew than I had.”
“President John Adams financed the church’s construction through a land donation, and the bulk of the granite comes from the Adams family quarry. Unfortunately, John died before the church was completed.”
“As I stood near the pulpit, I had a great view looking down the main aisle – the same aisle once walked by John Quincy and Louisa Catherine Adams.”
UNITED STATES CAPITOL – John Quincy Adams took the Oath of Office as our sixth President on March 4, 1825. It was a cool, rainy day in Washington, but it didn’t matter as Adams was inaugurated in the House of Representatives Chamber.
“During his inauguration, which was in the House of Representatives Chamber where I’m standing in this image, John Quincy Adams was the first to wear long trousers rather than knee breeches.”
“Adams also had a short haircut instead of his hair tied in a queue. He was such a trend setter!”
“As he recited the Presidential Oath of Office, John Quincy placed his hand on a book of law rather than the Bible.”
THE WHITE HOUSE – When John Quincy Adams took the Oath of Office as President on March 4, 1825, he became the first son of another to become President. His wife, Louisa Catherine, became the only First Lady born in a foreign country, until Melania Trump’s husband Donald took office in 2017.
“While he was President, JQA loved to make daily walks from the White House to the Potomac River to skinny-dip.”
“Like his father, John Quincy Adams did not attend the inauguration of his predecessor. When Adams left the White House, he walked out of the doors behind me as the President with the highest IQ in history at 165. He was also the only President to meet both George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.Adams also spoke eight foreign languages and is the only U.S. President in history who could converse in Russian. If he we alive in 2023, I know what he would say to Vladimir Putin – “иди на хуй!”
LOUISA CATHERINE ADAMS – Life in the White House wasn’t favorable for Louisa during her husband’s unpopular administration, and a lot of bitterness towards John Quincy’s policies were directed at her. Even though their marriage was strained during his Presidency, they reconciled near the end of his of his term in 1828. Louisa was the only foreign-born First Lady in history, until Melania Trump acquired the role in 2017.
UNITED STATES CAPITOL – Two years after losing the 1828 Presidential election to Andrew Jackson, Adams was elected to the House of Representatives where he served nine consecutive terms.
“On February 21, 1848, John Quincy Adams collapsed from a cerebral hemorrhage while sitting at his desk in the House of Representatives Chamber.With dozens of tourists testing out the Capitol’s acoustics from this spot, I was lucky to not get stepped on.”
“During my second visit to the Old House Chamber on May 18, 2022, I was forced to wear a neck brace to keep my head from falling off.”
“This image depicts the moment Congressman John Quincy Adams collapsed at his desk in the House of Representatives.”
LINDY CLAIBORNE BOGGS CONGRESSIONAL WOMEN’S READING ROOM – “Behind this door was the Speaker’s Room where JQ Adams died. Since it was currently being used as a “Resting Room” for women Representatives to Congress, I was denied access.During my 2022 visit, Congresswoman Lisa McClain said she took me inside the room, but Lisa was denied permission to photograph me on the couch where Adams died.”
“Two days after collapsing at his desk in the House of Representatives, John Quincy Adams died in the Speaker’s Room on February 23, 1848.“
CONGRESSIONAL CEMETERY – Officially known as the Washington Parish Burial Ground, this cemetery is located in Washington D.C. and is about 1.5 miles east of the U.S. Capitol.
“Congressman and former President John Quincy Adams died on February 23, 1848 in the Speaker’s Room of the U.S. Capitol. Following his funeral on February 26th in the House of Representatives, his body was temporarily entombed here.”
“Adams’ body remained in this Public Vault for one week before it was transported to Quincy, Massachusetts. I was stunned when Tom opened the vault’s door and carried me into the tomb. I admit, I was creeped-out a bit.”
HANCOCK CEMETERY – Established around 1640 in Quincy, Massachusetts, this cemetery boasts the family burial vault of the Adams’. “Following John Quincy Adams death on February 23, 1848, his body was transported here from the temporary tomb at Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C.”
“This vault was the original burial site of John and Abigail Adams; until John Quincy had them re-interred in the family crypt beneath the church across the street.”
“I’m back at the United First Parish Church in Quincy, Massachusetts where the two Presidents and two First Ladies were interred in the Adams family crypt.”
THE ADAMS FAMILY CRYPT – “It’s creepy and it’s kooky, mysterious and spooky, petite as Boston’s Mookie, the Adams Family crypt. The church is a museum, when tourists come to see ‘em, it’s a mausoleum, the Adams Family crypt. Neat. Sweet. Upbeat. So, put your ragged shawl on, the tombs you’ll want to crawl on, we’re gonna pay a call on, the Adams Family crypt.”
“The wreath in front of me was placed on Adams’ tomb to honor the 250th anniversary of his birth, which was just three days before I stood there on July 14, 2017.”
“When John Quincy’s wife, Louisa Catherine Adams, died on May 15, 1852, son Charles Francis Adams had his parent’s bodies re-interred in the family crypt below the United First Parish Church.”
“There’s no place in the country where two Presidential gravesites are as close together than in this crypt in Quincy, Massachusetts.”
“When my photographer, Thomas Watson, paid his first visit to John Quincy Adams’ grave in 2017, it was the 26th Presidential gravesite the two of us had seen together.”
“This was me at John Quincy’s final resting place during my first visit on July 14, 2017.”
“And I returned on June 8, 2023 for my second and final visit to date.”
“I hope you have enjoyed this post about the life and times of John Quincy Adams. Please leave a comment and share your thoughts about our sixth President.”
My name is Thomas Watson and I've been a U.S. history fanatic since I was 9 years old. In 2013, I decided to take my passion to the next level when I purchased a Thomas Jefferson bobble head with the sole intention of photographing that bobble head at Presidential sites. From that first day on July 10, 2013 at Spiegel Grove in Fremont, Ohio, this journey has taken on a life of its own. Now, nearly 40,000 miles later, I thought it was time to share the experiences, stories, and photos of Jefferson's travels. Keep in mind, this entire venture has been done with the deepest respect for the men who held the office as our President; no matter what their political affiliations, personal ambitions, or public scandals may have been. This blog is intended to be a true tribute to the Presidents of the United States and this story will be told Through the Eyes of Jefferson. I hope you enjoy the ride!
