author
John Adams
1735–1826
A sharp-minded lawyer, diplomat, and revolutionary leader, he helped shape the United States long before he became its second president. His life story mixes fierce public principle with private warmth, especially in the famous letters he exchanged with Abigail Adams.
3 Audiobooks
State of the Union Addresses
by John Adams
Novanglus, and Massachusettensis or, Political Essays, Published in the Years 1774 and 1775, on the Principal Points of Controversy, between Great Britain and Her Colonies
by John Adams, Daniel Leonard
Familiar Letters of John Adams and His Wife Abigail Adams During the Revolution with a Memoir of Mrs. Adams
by John Adams, Abigail Adams
About the author
Born in Braintree, Massachusetts, in 1735, John Adams began his career as a lawyer and rose to prominence during the imperial crisis with Britain. He became a leading voice for independence in the Continental Congress, helped draft the Massachusetts constitution, and later served overseas as a diplomat for the new nation.
Adams played an important part in securing recognition for the United States abroad and helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris that ended the Revolutionary War. He then became the first vice president under George Washington and served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801.
Remembered as one of the central Founding Fathers, Adams was known for his restless intellect, strong sense of duty, and willingness to defend unpopular positions. He died in Quincy, Massachusetts, on July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.