Valiant First Lady

Although she is frequently lauded as one of America’s early feminists (if not the first), Abigail Adams was nothing of the sort.  She was a valiant woman par excellence.  While an advocate for women’s education and inclusion in certain areas of the public sphere, she was first and foremost a wife and mother whose devotion to her family gave her strength to face her trials with bravery and resourcefulness.   They were always her first priority, but when it was necessary, she was willing and eager to enter the public sphere, but always for the sake of those she loved.

                Abigail and John Adams have possibly the most beautiful true love story to be found in American history.  For much of their married lives, especially before John’s retirement from public life, they were separated, as John was first a lawyer serving on the Massachusetts circuit court, later a minister to various European countries, and finally Vice President and President of the United States.  By their fourteenth anniversary, they had spent less than half of that time together.  However, their separation was to our great benefit, as we now have more than one thousand of their letters, which give a unique insight into not only the politics of the time, but also their beautiful, deep and loving friendship.

                John and Abigail’s home was in Braintree, MA, and it was there that Abigail spent her time running the household, cooking meals, mending clothes, raising their four children (and later her niece, as well as various grandchildren), and managing the farm.  While John was trying to win support for American Independence in Philadelphia and France, it was up to Abigail to ensure that her children were clothed, fed, educated, and healthy.  She decided on her own to have the family inoculated against smallpox while it was raging in Boston in 1776.  While she often wrote to John to ask his advice on matters, more often she was left to make those decisions for herself, as it sometimes took months for a reply to reach her, if it even did.  Many letters, especially those that crossed the Atlantic, were lost, due to naval combat during the Revolution.

                The war made the separation from her husband difficult in other ways as well.  When the fighting was happening close to home, it was Abigail who was responsible for the safety of her family.  Abigail and her eldest son, John Quincy, observed the Battle of Bunker Hill from their home, ten miles from the action.  She reported all that she could of the war to her husband, who was miles away, sitting in Congress, worrying about his family.  The war also put a strain on the economy, and in order to better provide for her family, Abigail asked John to send her articles from Europe that could be sold for a profit in Massachusetts. 

                Once peace was achieved, Abigail’s trials continued, as her husband continued to serve his country away from home.  Abigail valiantly accepted the challenge, and worked to improve the family farm.  While John was away serving as President in the former capital of Philadelphia, Abigail decided to surprise him by building an addition which almost doubled the size of their family home, and included a sitting room for her and a study for him.

                Abigail is best remembered for asking John to “remember the ladies” when he helped to design a new government for this country, and give them more freedom and rights than they had at the time.  John dismissed it jokingly, but this simple request has defined Abigail ever since.  Much more influential for American history was the loving support which she consistently gave John through the difficulties he encountered in all of his efforts on behalf of the country he loved.  From the moment he stepped foot into Independence Hall as a member of the Continental Congress to the morning of Thomas Jefferson’s inauguration when he rode out Washington DC, he was constantly at odds with those around him, even members of his own country, and later his own party.  He needed to confide in someone, and it was Abigail who was able to reassure him and encourage him in his struggles.

                In many ways, the Valiant Woman in Proverbs could be Abigail.  She handled the running of the household with confidence and prudence, spoke and wrote with wisdom and clemency, and was a steadfast support for her husband, and a loving mother to her children. There is so much more to say about these two.  There are many biographies of them as individuals, but also books about their relationship and their family.  My favorite though, is the collection of their letters, My Dearest Friend.  For anyone more interested in learning more about them and this time period, it’s the perfect place to start.  And if you ever find yourself in the Boston area, you simply must visit their homes in Quincy.

Bibliography-

      The Adams Papers, Edited by Butterfield, L.H. Massachusetts: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1961.

     Gelles, Edith. “First Thoughts”: Life and Letters of Abigail Adams. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1998.

     Gelles, Edith. Portia: The World of Abigail Adams. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1992.

     McCullough, David. John Adams. New York: Simon and Schulter, 2001

   My Dearest Friend: Letters of John and Abigail Adams, Edited by Hogan, Margaret and Taylor, C. James. Massachusetts: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2007.

      Roberts, Cokie. Ladies of Liberty: The Women Who Shaped Our Nation, New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2008.

 Withy, Lynne. Dearest Friend: A Life of Abigail Adams. New York: Touchstone, 1981.