John Quincy Adams II (September 22, 1833 – August 14, 1894) was an American politician who represented Quincy in the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into single-member ...

from 1866 to 1867, 1868 to 1869, 1871 to 1872, and from 1874 to 1875. Adams served as a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

under

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

John Albion Andrew John Albion Andrew (May 31, 1818 – October 30, 1867) was an American lawyer and politician from Massachusetts. He was elected in 1860 as the 25th Governor of Massachusetts, serving between 1861 and 1866, and led the state's contributions to ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. Later in life, he left the Republican Party in 1867 for the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

Early life

John Quincy Adams II was born on September 22, 1833, in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. The 2nd of 7th children born to Charles Francis Adams and Abigail Brown Brooks. He was the paternal grandson of the 6th United States president,

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States S ...

(his namesake), and the great-grandson of the 2nd president,

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

. His maternal grandfather was shipping magnate

Peter Chardon Brooks Peter Chardon Brooks (January 6, 1767 – January 1, 1849) was a wealthy Massachusetts merchant. Early life Brooks born in North Yarmouth, Maine, on January 6, 1767. His parents were the Rev. Edward Brooks and Abigail Brown. In 1769, the fami ...

(1767–1849). He graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1853, studied law, and two years later was admitted to the Suffolk County bar, and practiced in

. He followed his profession for a short time, then, becoming interested in

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

, he established an experimental model farm of five hundred acres near Quincy,

Career

During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

he served as an aide-de-camp on the staff of

, first as a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, and later as a

. During the war his duties included visiting Massachusetts units in the field and providing the governor status reports on their condition. In 1862, he made inspection visits to several Massachusetts units operating in North Carolina. Adams served in several local offices in Quincy, including town meeting moderator, school board chairman and judge of the local court. He was elected to the

state legislature as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, but soon switched to the

because of his dissatisfaction with Republican

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

policies. In addition to serving in the

in 1865, 1867, 1870 and 1873, he was the unsuccessful Democratic nominee for

Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the chief executive officer of the government of Massachusetts. The governor is the head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonwealth's military forces. Massachusetts ...

in every year from 1867 to 1871. (Governors served one year terms until 1918.) Adams received one vote for the Democratic nomination for

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

at the 1868 Democratic National Convention. In 1872, the faction of Democrats that refused to support

Horace Greeley Horace Greeley (February 3, 1811 – November 29, 1872) was an American newspaper editor and publisher who was the founder and newspaper editor, editor of the ''New-York Tribune''. Long active in politics, he served briefly as a congressm ...

, the fusion candidate of Democrats and the Liberal Republican Party, nominated

Charles O'Conor Charles O'Conor may refer to: * Charles O'Conor (historian) (1710–1791), Irish writer, historian, and antiquarian * Charles O'Conor (priest) (1764–1828), Irish priest and historian, grandson of the above * Charles O'Conor (American politician) ( ...

for president and Adams for

vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

on the " Straight-Out Democratic" ticket. They declined, but their names remained on the ballot in some states. In 1873, he was the unsuccessful nominee for

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

. After losing an election for lieutenant governor in 1876, Adams refused most further involvement in politics, though he was considered by

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

for a cabinet position in 1893. In 1877, he was made a member of the

Harvard Corporation The President and Fellows of Harvard College (also called the Harvard Corporation or just the Corporation) is the smaller and more powerful of Harvard University's two governing boards, and is now the oldest corporation in America. Together with ...

Personal life

Fanny Crowninshield by Samuel Worcester Rowse

In 1861, Adams married Frances "Fanny" Cadwalader Crowninshield (1839–1911), daughter of George Crowninshield (1812–1857) and Harriet Sears Crowninshield (1809–1873) of the politically powerful

Crowninshield family Crowninshield may refer to the following: * Crowninshield family, long-standing American family * USS Crowninshield, a World War I era American destroyer * Crowninshield Island Crowninshield Island, also known as Brown's Island, is a small islan ...

. Fanny was the granddaughter of former

United States Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the United States Department of the Navy, Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States D ...

under presidents Madison and Monroe,

Benjamin Williams Crowninshield Benjamin Williams Crowninshield (December 27, 1772 – February 3, 1851) served as the United States Secretary of the Navy between 1815 and 1818, during the administrations of Presidents James Madison and James Monroe. Early life Crownins ...

. Their children were: * John Quincy Adams III. (1862–1876), who died young. * George Caspar Adams (1863–1900), who was the head coach of the Harvard University football program. *

Charles Francis Adams III Charles Francis Adams III (August 2, 1866 – June 10, 1954) was an American lawyer and politician, who served as the 44th United States Secretary of the Navy under President Herbert Hoover from 1929 to 1933. He was skipper of the Resolute which ...

(1866–1954), who served as

Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...

, and who married Frances Lovering. * Frances "Fanny" C. Adams (1873–1876), who died in childhood. * Arthur Charles Adams (1877–1943), who served as vice president of the Adams Trust Company, the Colony Trust and the New England Trust Company. * Abigail "Hitty" Adams (1879–1974), who married Robert Homans in 1907. Adams died at age 60 in

Wollaston, Massachusetts Wollaston, Massachusetts, is a neighborhood in the city of Quincy, Massachusetts. Divided by Hancock Street or Route 3A, the Wollaston Beach side is known as Wollaston Park, while the Wollaston Hill side is known as Wollaston Heights. It is b ...

on August 14, 1894. He was buried at

Mount Wollaston Cemetery Mount Wollaston Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery at 20 Sea Street in the Merrymount neighborhood of Quincy, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1855 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. History In 1854 when Hancock ...

in Quincy.Mout Wollaston Cemetery Tour
/ref> His widow died in 1911, and left an estate worth $1,200,000 to their three surviving children.

Descendants

Through his daughter, Abigail, he was the grandfather of George Casper Homans (1910–1989), a sociologist and the founder of behavioral sociology and the

Social Exchange Theory Social exchange theory is a sociological and psychological theory that studies the social behavior in the interaction of two parties that implement a cost-benefit analysis to determine risks and benefits. The theory also involves economic relation ...

Family tree

References

Attribution *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, John Quincy II 1833 births 1894 deaths Harvard University alumni Adams political family Crowninshield family People of Massachusetts in the American Civil War Massachusetts Republicans Massachusetts Democrats Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Massachusetts lawyers Massachusetts state court judges Politicians from Quincy, Massachusetts Union Army colonels 1872 United States vice-presidential candidates