John Adams (portrait above) was the great grandson of Thomas Boylston who was born 1615 in French, Kent, England. At age 20, Thomas sailed from London on the ship "Defence" and arrived at Boston, Massachusetts on 8 October 1635. He settled in nearby Watertown, in the colony of Massachusetts, and died there in 1653. Thomas Boylston was my 10th great grandfather.
John Adams (great grandson of Thomas Boylston) became the--Second President of the United States from 1797 to 1801. President Adams was born on 30 Oct 1735 (19 Oct 1735 O.S. Julian Calendar) in Braintree, Massachusetts. He died on 04 Jul 1826 in Quincy, Massachusetts. He married Abigail Smith on 24 Feb 1764 in Weymouth, Norfolk Co., MA, daughter of William Smith and Elizabeth Quincy. She was born on 23 Nov 1744 in Weymouth, Massachusetts. She died (of Typhoid) on 28 Oct 1818 in Quincy, Massachusetts. President John Adams was my 3rd cousin 8x removed.
Notes for President John Adams (1735 - 1826)
1755, John graduated Harvard College
1758, he was admitted to the Massachusetts Bar
1767, He became the father of John Quincy Adams (1767-1848) who was the sixth President of the United States (1825–1829).
1774, he was one of the five delegates chosen by Massachusetts to the Congress at Philadelphia
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John Trumbull's, Declaration of Independence, depicting the five-man drafting committee
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1776, Adams persuaded congress to approve his resolution calling on the colonies to adopt new independent governments.
On June 7, 1776, Adams seconded the resolution of independence introduced by Richard Henry Lee which stated, "These colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states," and championed the resolution until it was adopted by Congress on July 2, 1776.
He was appointed to a committee with Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston and Roger Sherman, to draft the Declaration of Independence, which was to be ready when congress voted on independence.
The first draft of the Declaration of Independence was written primarily by Jefferson, and Adams (who had promised to consult with Jefferson) continued to occupy the foremost place in the debate on its adoption.
After editing the document further, congress approved it on July 4. Many years later, Jefferson hailed Adams as "the pillar of [the Declaration's] support on the floor of Congress, its ablest advocate and defender against the multifarious assaults it encountered."
During the Revolutionary War, he successfully negotiated treaties of recognition and friendship with France, Holland and Prussia, giving the United States its first foreign recognition as a nation.
1779, he wrote most of the Massachusetts Constitution, with assistance from Sam Adams (his cousin) and James Bowdoin.
In 1785, he was appointed as the Ambassador from the United States to Great Britain (the first following the Revolution).
1789, he ran for President, coming in second behind General George Washington. In accordance with the US Constitution (at that time), that made Washington President and Adams Vice President. His duties as Vice President (under the Constitution) made him President of the Senate. Between 1789 and 1797 he cast 29 tie-breaking votes in the Senate (a record that still stands today).
1796, he ran for President on the Federalist Party platform against Governor Thomas Pinckney (Federalist), Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican Party) and Senator Aaron Burr (also Democratic-Republican). In a narrow victory, Adams won the Presidency over the next candidate, Thomas Jefferson, thus, under the rules then in place, Jefferson become Adams' Vice President.
1797 to 1801, President Adams built up the US Navy, fought an undeclared war with France, and signed into law the Alien and Sedition Acts (a legal instrument against French actions in America, but it was used by some politicians to silence their political opponents).
1797, he gave the first ever State of the Union address.
1800, Just before leaving office he became the first President to occupy the newly constructed White House.
1800, Adams appointed his Secretary of State, John Marshall, as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court; Marshall is considered one of the best Chief Justices the US ever had.
July 4, 1826 (on the 50th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence) he died at his home in Quincy.
President John Adams -- my 3rd cousin 8x removed
I am related to him though Thomas Boylston (1615 - 1653) my 10th great grandfather. My lineage to John Adams looks like this:
President John Adams (1735 - 1826)
my 3rd cousin 8x removed
Susannah Boylston (1709 - 1797)
Mother of President John
Peter Boylston (1673 - 1743)
Father of Susannah
Dr. Thomas Boylston (1645 - 1695)
Father of Peter
Thomas Boylston (1615 - 1653) [Great great grandfather to President John Adams; 10th great grandfather to Jerry England]
Father of Dr. Thomas
Elizabeth Boylston (1640 - 1665)
Daughter of Thomas
Elizabeth Fisher (1659 - 1694)
Daughter of Elizabeth
Henry Plimpton (1684 - 1731)
Son of Elizabeth
Capt. Job Plimpton (1718 - 1797)
Son of Henry
Job Jr. Plimpton (1746 - 1814)
Son of Capt. Job
Timothy Plimpton (1775 - 1824)
Son of Job Jr.
Calvin Plimpton (1815 - 1874)
Son of Timothy
Charles Henry Plympton (1845 - 1925)
Son of Calvin
Geneva "Neva" Plimpton (1870 - 1939)
Daughter of Charles Henry
Lydia Corinna Brown (1891 - 1971)
Daughter of Geneva "Neva"
my grandmother
My favorite John Adams quote, "In my many years I have come to the conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm and three or more is a congress.”
John Adams and I share the same birth month and day (October 30) :-)
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