John Quincy Adams

6th President of the United States, Presidential Cabinet Secretary, U.S. Congressman. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, he served as the 6th President of the United States from 1825 until 1829. He served as the 8th United States Secretary of State during the Administration of James Monroe (1817 until 1825). He represented the State of Massachusetts' 11th Congressional District (1831 to 1833), 12th Congressional District (1833 until 1843), and 8th Congressional District (1843 until his death in 1848) in the United States House of Representatives. John Adams and John Quincy Adams were the first father and son to serve as U.S. Presidents, and were the only family members to do so until George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. The second child of John and Abigail Adams, John Quincy Adams witnessed first hand the brilliance of his father in the establishment of the United States. A founding father of the United States, John Adams went on to become the Second President of the United States. During his teenage years, John Quincy Adams acquired experience as a negotiator as he accompanied his father on overseas trips. He studied Law at Harvard College and became fluent in several languages. He wed Louisa Catherine Johnson in 1797. She held the distinction as being the only First Lady (prior to Melania Trump who became First Lady in 2017) to be born outside the United States. Their union produced three sons who lived to adulthood. When his father was elected President, John Quincy served as the Minister to Prussia from 1797 to 1801. In 1802, he served as a State Senator of Massachusetts, then was elected (as a Federalist) and served as U.S. Senator from Massachusetts from 1803 until 1808. He was appointed Minister of Russia during the Administration of James Madison from 1809 until 1814. In 1814, Adams served as Chief Negotiator of the Treaty of Ghent and was a key figure in the negotiation process which ended the War of 1812. From 1815 to 1817, he served as Minister to Great Britain. During his tenure as U.S. Secretary of State, Adams achieved the purchase of Florida from Spain; the agreement became known as The Adams-Onis Treaty in 1819. Additionally, he was a proponent of the "Monroe Doctrine" which warned European nations not to interfere in affairs of the Western Hemisphere. The U.S. Presidential Election of 1824 saw Adams pitted against war hero Andrew Jackson, William Crawford, and Henry Clay. Without a decisive victor to the election, the House of Representatives was tasked with deciding the winner. Henry Clay decided to back Adams, which aided John Quincy Adams becoming President. During his tenure, Adams prioritized the strengthening of infrastructure which included a network of canals, roadways, and the establishment of a national university. He supported participation in the Panama Congress in 1826 and, that same year, appointed Robert Trimble to serve as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court. Adams was defeated for reelection by Andrew Jackson in 1828. After he left the Presidency, he served in the United States House of Representatives for seventeen years. During his tenure in Congress, Adams often found himself in the minority of causes. He supported the continuation of the Bank of the United States and was opposed to the annexation of Texas. He voted against the declaration of war with Mexico in 1846. Adams suffered a massive stroke (he suffered a mild stroke in 1846) after casting a vote to oppose a proposal to decorate certain Generals who served during the Mexican War. He died two days later and was buried in his family's tomb in Quincy, Massachusetts. Burial here