Junior Ranger Booklet for Ages 6 to 8

Junior Ranger Booklet for Ages 9 and Up

John Adams, son of Deacon John Adams and Susanna Boylston, was a fifth generation descendant from Henry Adams, who reached the shores of America from England in 1633. Henry with his wife and eight children was given a grant of forty acres of land not far from where John and Susanna Boylston Adams brought up their three sons, including their eldest, John.

Abigail Adams brought more intellect and ability to the position of first lady of the United States than any other woman. President Harry Truman once noted that Abigail "would have been a better President than her husband." Yet she lived in an era when women were not supposed to have, or express, their opinions about government or the exciting events of the times. Abigail Adams struggled her whole life with the limitations that society placed upon her dreams. Despite these hardships, she found a way to use her talents to serve her nation by assisting and advising her husband, President John Adams, and teaching and guiding her son, President John Quincy Adams. Throughout her seventy-four-year life, this American heroine was an invaluable contributor to the founding and strengthening of the United States. 

No American who ever entered the presidency was better prepared to fill that office than John Quincy Adams. Born on July 11, 1767 in Braintree, Massachusetts, he was the son of two fervent revolutionary patriots, John and Abigail Adams, whose ancestors had lived in New England for five generations. Abigail gave birth to her son two days before her prominent grandfather, Colonel John Quincy, died so the boy was named John Quincy Adams in his honor. Through the example of his father and mother the child learned the sacrifices that individuals need to make to preserve and protect the welfare of society. When John Quincy Adams was seven years old, his father traveled to New York to participate in the First Continental Congress. There, representatives from the American Colonies met to discuss their opposition to England's Colonial Government. In 1775 a second Continental Congress was convened in Philadelphia to continue to debate the issue of independence. From Philadelphia John wrote to Abigail of the Congress' activities and of their duties, as parents, to educate a new generation of Americans. John wrote: "Let us teach them not only to do virtuously, but to excel. To excel, they must be taught to be steady, active and industrious." John Quincy's parents succeeded in their objective, for not soon after, the young Adams wrote that he was working hard on his studies and hoped "to grow a better boy." War soon forced young John to mature at even a more accelerated rate. 

Louisa Catherine Adams is often times omitted or forgotten in books of first ladies or notable American women. Nevertheless, she made immense contributions to her nation and played a vital role in supporting the career of her husband, John Quincy Adams. Louisa’s relative obscurity may be due to the fact that, although she disliked the restrictions that society placed upon her as a woman, she conformed to them and concentrated on being a loyal wife and devoted mother. While some today may disagree with such priorities, it would be wrong to interpret Louisa’s choices as evidence of her weakness. Post-Revolutionary War America expected wives to subordinate their wishes to their husband’s desires. Although Louisa did not openly challenge these standards, she frequently showed her abilities. When John Quincy Adams was weakened by the conflicts and hardships in his life, it was often his wife who brought strength, courage, and compassion to the family. Only through a thorough examination of this woman’s life can we uncover the important place in history that Louisa Catherine Adams truly deserves.