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John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams (b. July 11, 1767, in Braintree, Massachusetts) was the sixth president of the United States. He served from 1825 to 1829 and died on February 23, 1848, at the age of 80. His father, John Adams, served as the second president of the United States.
Adams was a member of the Democratic-Republican Party. His vice president was John Calhoun.
Prior to serving as president, Adams served as an ambassador, state senator, U.S. senator, and U.S. secretary of state. He served as a U.S. representative after his presidency. Before becoming a politician, Adams practiced law in Boston, Massachusetts.[1]
Biography
Timeline of life events
Below is an abbreviated outline of Adams' professional and political career:[1]
- 1767: Born in Braintree, Massachusetts
- 1781: Worked as secretary and translator to the ambassador to Russia
- 1783: Worked as secretary to his father in the negotiation of the Treaty of Paris.
- 1787: Earned a B.A. from Harvard College
- 1790: Earned an M.A. from Harvard College
- 1790: Began practicing law in Boston, Massachusetts
- 1794-1797: Served as ambassador to the Netherlands
- 1797-1801: Served as ambassador to Prussia
- 1802-1803: Served in the Massachusetts State Senate
- 1803-1808: Served in the United States Senate
- 1809-1814: Served as ambassador to Russia
- 1814: Served as the chief negotiator during the Treaty of Ghent
- 1814-1817: Served as ambassador to the United Kingdom
- 1817-1825: Served as U.S. secretary of state
- 1825-1829: Served as president of the United States
- 1831-1848: Served in the United States House of Representatives
- February 23, 1848: Died after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage two days earlier on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives
Before the presidency
Adams was born in Braintree, Massachusetts, on July 11, 1767, to John Adams and Abigail Adams. In 1781, Adams served as secretary and translator for the ambassador to Russia, Francis Dana. Adams traveled with his father to Paris, France, in 1783, serving as his father's secretary during the negotiation of the Treaty of Paris. Adams studied at Harvard College, earning his B.A. in 1787 and his M.A. in 1790. In 1790, he was admitted to the Massachusetts bar in and began practicing law in Boston, Massachusetts.
In 1782, President George Washington appointed Adams as the U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands, a position his father held before him. Adams served in that position until 1797 when his father, then the president of the United States, appointed him as the U.S. ambassador to Prussia. Adams served as ambassador to Prussia until 1801. In 1802, Adams was elected to the Massachusetts State Senate. The Massachusetts General Court elected him as a Federalist to the U.S. Senate in 1803. In 1808 he resigned his seat in the U.S. Senate and became a Democratic-Republican. President James Madison appointed Adams as the first officially recognized ambassador to Russia in 1809. In 1814, Adams was recalled from Russia to serve as the chief negotiator for the United States during the Treaty of Ghent. After the negotiations, Madison appointed Adams as ambassador to the United Kingdom in 1814. Adams served as U.S. secretary of state in the James Monroe administration from 1817 to 1825. As secretary of state he negotiated the Adams-Onis Treaty and Treaty of 1818. In 1823, Adams authored the Monroe Doctrine, which established a U.S. policy of opposition towards European colonialism in Latin America.
In 1824, Adams ran for president of the United States against Andrew Jackson, William Crawford, and Henry Clay. All four candidates ran as Democratic-Republicans. No candidate earned a majority of electoral votes, and the election was decided by a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. In the House vote, Adams earned 13 votes, Jackson earned seven votes, and William Crawford (D-R) earned four votes. Clay supported Adams in the House vote, and Adams was elected on the first ballot.[1][2]
Presidency
Adams was inaugurated on March 4, 1825. He appointed Henry Clay as his secretary of state. The appointment brought with it accusations of corruption due to Clay's support of Adams in the 1824 U.S. House vote for president. Adams proposed programs seeking to improve transportation infrastructure, use public land for conservation, survey the U.S. coast, and build astronomical observatories. His opponents in Congress argued that the proposals would expand the role of the federal government at the expense of state and local governments. During the 1826 mid-term elections, Adams lost control of Congress to supporters of Jackson. Opposition to the Adams administration grew, and Adams struggled to implement many of his proposals.
Construction of the Erie Canal, which began in 1817, was finished in 1826. In an effort to compete with the Erie Canal, construction began on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1828. The B&O Railroad opened its first section in 1830 and would extend from New York to Illinois. Proposals were adopted for the construction and extension of several other major road and canal projects.
In the 1828 election for president, Adams ran as a National Republican and was defeated by Andrew Jackson. Jackson earned 178 electoral votes and Adams earned 83 electoral votes. Adams did not attend the inauguration of Jackson on March 4, 1829.[1][2]
Post-presidency
Adams was elected to the U.S. House in 1830. He continued his political career by fighting for the abolition of slavery. On February 21, 1848, Adams was on the floor of the House of Representatives arguing for the government to honor U.S. Army officers who had served in the Mexican-American War. He suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and was taken to the Speaker's Room, where he died two days later.[1]
Personal
Adams married Louisa Johnson in 1797 while on his way to serve as ambassador to Prussia. They had three sons and a daughter: George, John, Charles, and Louisa.[1]
Elections
1828 presidential election
In 1828, Adams was defeated by Andrew Jackson (D) in the general election for the United States presidency.
| U.S. presidential election, 1828 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic |  Andrew Jackson |
56% | 647,286 | 178 | |
| National Republican | John Quincy Adams | 44% | 508,064 | 83 | |
| Total Votes | 1,155,350 | 261 | |||
| Election results via: 1828 official election results | |||||
1824 presidential election
In 1824, Adams faced Andrew Jackson (D-R) in the general election for the United States presidency. No candidate earned a majority of electoral votes, and the election was decided by a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. In the House vote, Adams earned 13 votes, Jackson earned seven votes, and William Crawford (D-R) earned four votes.
| U.S. presidential election, 1824 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic-Republican | John Quincy Adams |
31% | 108,740 | 84 | |
| Democratic-Republican | Andrew Jackson | 43.8% | 153,544 | 99 | |
| Democratic-Republican | William H. Crawford | 11.7% | 40,856 | 41 | |
| Democratic-Republican | Henry Clay | 13.6% | 47,531 | 37 | |
| Total Votes | 350,671 | 261 | |||
| Election results via: 1824 official election results | |||||
State of the Union addresses
Every year in office, the president of the United States addresses Congress on the present state of affairs as well as the administration's goals for the coming year.[3] Following are transcripts from Adams' State of the Union addresses.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Biography.com, "John Quincy Adams," accessed July 6, 2018
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Presidential Power, "John Quincy Adams Timeline," accessed July 6, 2018
- ↑ Congressional Research Service, "The President’s State of the Union Address: Tradition, Function, and Policy Implications," January 24, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by James Monroe |
President of the United States 1825-1829 |
Succeeded by Andrew Jackson |
| |||||||
