ExclusiveAbigail Adams: America’s First Lady Activist

Welcome to American Legends. My name is Tiffany Brannan. Each culture has its legends, and that could be myths or different stories, but here in America, our greatest legends are the wonderful heroes who are right from our history pages. Now, some of these heroes are very famous and some are obscure, but each person deserves to be discovered because each man or woman stands as a great example of how we can be better Americans When you think about American history, perhaps a few names stand out. Names like George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, or more recently, presidents like Franklin D. Roosevelt. All these men have made lasting impressions on the United States as presidents. Yet behind every president was a very important lady, the first lady. Although we often think that it's only in the last few generations that first ladies have been bold political figures, learning more about the history of the early first ladies shows that many of these early wives had very strong opinions and they were extremely influential on their husbands and the shaping of the nation. For example, today we're going to talk about Abigail Adams. I think we all know the name of the first first lady, Martha Washington. Now, at that time, the term first lady wasn't used, but what about the second first lady? Now, John Adams was the second president of the United States, having served as the first vice president of the United States, and both as vice president and president, he was accompanied and greatly supported by his beloved wife, Abigail. They shared one of the longest marriages of a president first lady, having married for over 50 years. She was just over 20 when they married, having first met her future husband when she was 15. He was her third cousin, and they both came from Massachusetts. This was rather unusual for people of those early founding fathers, because so many of them were from Virginia. Yet they had a much more rural, rustic background, as opposed to being plantation owners like Washingtons and the Jeffersons. He came from a family of poor farmers. She, on the other hand, had several generations back of very cultured and educated men. She herself didn't have that formal of an education, but she and her sister were privately tutored and also had great access to a magnificent library. She learned to read and write, she learned arithmetic, and she taught herself French. She was a very intelligent, strong-minded woman. When she first met John Adams, it was not love at first sight. He didn't think very much of her, but as they grew to know each other better over the next eight years, they became very fond of each other, eventually marrying. They had six children together, four of whom lived to adulthood. One of these children would be a future president of the United States, John Quincy Adams, the sixth president, and John Adams was the only president for 200 years who would have a son who also served as president of the United States. John Adams often had to work away from the farm. The Adams farm was called Braintree, and there they lived and had a simple life together. When he was a lawyer, he was often in Boston, and then as he started serving in politics, he would frequently be in Philadelphia. Eventually, he became an ambassador and would be in France and then England. A lot of the time, Abigail couldn't accompany him, but when they were apart, as a matter of fact, for almost 10 years, he didn't spend much time at their home, but that doesn't mean that they were separated. Far from it. They had a very lively correspondence. They wrote very fond and very news-filled letters to each other. They would talk about political beliefs, religious ideas, they would speak fondly of their love for each other, discuss family matters, even gossip. And it's fascinating to see the vast array of literature which they produced in their correspondence. So many of these early presidents didn't keep a record of their letters to their wives. Both the Washingtons and Thomas Jefferson were believed to have destroyed the correspondence between husband and wife. Yet, that's not the case with the Adamses, so we can see what they said to each other and it's really interesting. It especially offers insight into the kind of woman whom Abigail Adams was. She accompanied her husband, first to France and then to England. And while she was with him, she learned a lot about diplomatic policies, which would serve very valuable to her as she was then later First Lady. While Adams was away, it was her job to educate the children and take care of the farm, even dealing with business matters. She advised her husband in so many matters. When he was president, he only served for one term, four years, and Abigail only was able to spend 22 out of his 48 months with him in Philadelphia and then later Washington as he was the president. This was partly because she often suffered from failing health. She had to care for the children, take care of their farm, and it wasn't always easy for her to make the journey. Yet, she was always offering him wise counsel and advice. Shortly after being elected, he wrote to her that he needed her wise and good counsel more now than ever, and she certainly had plenty of opinions. She's one of the only early First Ladies who used the power of the press to help her husband in his political matters. As a matter of fact, she was one of the only people in these early days to really leverage the press to talk to the people, similarly to how people do now, whether using the press or social media. She would write letters and send them to editors to have them published, and sometimes she would write letters and send them to friends to have them send them to friendly publishers. Thus, she was able to get some favorable opinions about her husband in the press. What's most notable about Abigail Adams is that she completely debunks any theories or ideas you might have about how women had to be silent at this time. She told her husband in no uncertain terms what she thought he should do politically, and she was also very vocal about her belief that women should be represented in the new government. As Adams was involved in the crafting of the Declaration of Independence, Abigail famously wrote to him to remember the ladies, as you're coming up with this new document of freedom, to please grant ladies more freedom and representation than they've been granted in Europe. She went on to say that she thought it was unfair for wives to basically have no rights outside those of their husbands, because at that time husbands and wives were one legal entity, and if a woman wasn't married, her property and her legal representation was strictly from her father. And she said that members of your sex are known for being tyrants. It's the natural bend of them. She didn't seem to think of her husband in that way because it seemed that he was very fair and very loving and respectful of her, yet she felt that many men want to treat their wives with less than the respect they deserved if given that much power. So she urged him to not give men the power to be that much of tyrants. She never specifically mentioned the right to vote, but you have to consider what federalists believed at that time. Very few, even white men, voted in that early structure, since the federalists believed more in having the electoral college and elected officials, the same principles that originally had bothered Adams. Taxation without representation, or laws without representation. She believed that women's voice should be respected and represented in government, and she warned that if women were not given that kind of representation, that they would have to rise up and take it for themselves. She also believed very strongly that slave labor was wrong, as did Adams. They both came from a northern state, Massachusetts, so their family farms didn't rely on any slave labor, but Adams made it a point to never use enslaved labor, which was a novelty even in the north at that time. He tried to curtail the use of slaves in his own personal circle, and helped in ending the introduction of slaves to United States. I think that along with remembering the ladies, Abigail may have been disappointed that he didn't abolish slavery in the United States, or free slaves, but like many founding fathers, believed that it would be too drastic and too many people would be just diametrically opposed to it. It needed to be a more gradual incline, so I believe it was the fear of what people would say that kept him from making a bolder stand on that point. But he did believe very strongly in the equality of all individuals, and in treating people fairly, and in treating people of all colors, and women as well, with a great deal of respect because of his devotion to and love for his dear wife. Like many of the early first ladies, Abigail Adams didn't like the public eye, she wasn't very fond of having to always be surrounded by the judgment of the press, and people being out to get you. But that didn't stop her from being a very warm, welcoming hostess. She hosted charming events during the day and night at eventually the White House, and before that the other president's house in Philadelphia. Her charming personality helped endear John Adams to other people, and she was good friends with Martha Washington, helping to establish what the role of first lady would be. She also had the distinction of being the first first lady to reside in the White House, since she and John Adams moved into it in November of 1800, shortly before he would leave the presidency. At the time, it was known as the president's house. She didn't like it very much because it was cold, drafty, and muddy, and still under construction. She was distressed to not having a good place to hang her laundry, so she ended up using the East Room, which is the reception room for audiences. She was a very modest woman, being very critical of the French fashion of wearing more revealing necklines. She had strong Unitarian beliefs, and believed in modesty and being reserved. Although she found it very difficult to keep her opinions to herself, and she feared that she would get her husband in a lot of trouble by being too outspoken when people were too critical of him, because she defended him to the death. One of my favorite quotes from her is this, If we do not lay out ourselves in the service of mankind, whom should we serve? This reflected her belief that even if something is difficult, unnatural, against what we might like to do, we must do it, if it is what we know we have to do. Serving our country, serving others, serving our faith, serving our community, serving our family, as she lovingly did with her husband and children. Abigail Adams stands as a wonderful example of a woman who wasn't afraid to speak her mind, and who was very modest and traditional, while also being bold and speaking out about the rights of everyone to be treated as human beings with dignity. I challenge you to learn more about Abigail Adams, perhaps read some of the fascinating letters she exchanged with her husband John, and consider what kind of example she gives to women in the 21st century of how to be a very active member of your family, perhaps your business, your community, while not losing the modest feminine virtues of being a devoted wife, mother, and a feminine lady. Thank you for spending this time with me talking about the second first lady of the United States, and the remarkable role she played in shaping the role of the first lady, and influencing her husband. May we all learn from the example of these brave men and women who were the early American legends. Thank you for watching. Goodbye.