Fact #6: Who was First Lady Abigail Adams?

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Fact #6: Who was First Lady Abigail Adams?

Abigail Adams became First Lady when her husband John Adams was elected president in 1797. She missed the celebration, however, as the harsh winter kept her from traveling to Philadelphia to attend his inauguration.

John Adams may have been president, but he relied heavily on his wife. In fact, he wrote her a letter saying “the times are critical and dangerous and I must have you here to assist me.”

She wasn’t just a docile housewife. John saw her as his equal in life and a valued advisor in his government career. This can be seen through the over 1,100 letters the two exchanged in their life. In these letters, they addressed each other as “my dearest friend.”

John’s diplomatic work meant the couple spent many years separated and these letters are what helped keep them connected. They spoke oo everything, from the constitution to human rights.

In fact, Abigail was staunchly opposed to slavery and was an early fan of abolition.

She also was an advocate of women’s rights. In her most famous letter to her husband, she warned him that the new American government must “ remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could.”

Abigail is also in rare company. Her son John Quincy Adams eventually became president, too -making her just one of two First Ladies to be both the wife and mother of a president - the other being Barbara Bush.

REFERENCES:
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/100-years-womens-vote-suffrage-1918-facts/