Letter from Abigail Adams to Abigail Adams Smith, 1808

Women's rights advocate Abigail (Smith) Adams was the wife of John Adams (1735-1826), attorney, foreign diplomat, and the second president of the United States (1797-1801). She was born in 1744 in Weymouth, Massachusetts, to William and Elizabeth (Quincy) Smith; the second of four children. Her father was a Congregationalist minister and her mother, the daughter of Colonel John Quincy, was devoted to helping the sick and needy. Chronic bouts of poor health, and the societal limits placed on women and girls during the Revolutionary and Federalist eras, prevented Adams from receiving a formal education. Instead, she was taught to read and write at home and acquired additional knowledge through books and discussions with family members who were actively involved in government affairs. As a result, she became well versed in philosophy, theology, ancient history, government, and law.

In October of 1764, when she was 19 years old, Abigail Smith's father presided over her wedding to John Adams. The couple initially lived in Boston where they raised four children. Their daughter Abigail Amelia ("Nabby") Adams (1765-1813), eventually married Colonel William Smith, her father's secretary during the period he served as United States minister in Great Britain. Their oldest son, John Quincy Adams (1767-1848), went on to hold various political offices, and became the sixth president of the United States. A second daughter, Susanna Adams (1768-1770), died in infancy. The couple's two youngest sons, Charles Adams (1770-1800) and Thomas Boylston Adams (1772-1832) were graduates of Harvard College where they studied law.

Adams was often sharply criticized for her involvement and unwavering support of her husband's political affairs, which generated substantial correspondence. She was equally devoted to maintaining a stable home environment and by 1788, the family was living on a large farm they called Peacefield, which was located in the North Parish of Braintree (Quincy). In addition to managing household expenditures, organizing the labor force needed to produce sustenance crops and commodities, the Adams home was the center of many social activities and annual Independence Day celebrations. Abigail Adams died at the age of 73 in her home in Quincy, Massachusetts.