The diary of John Quincy Adams is one of the most extraordinary works in American literature. Begun in 1779 at the age of twelve and kept more or less faithfully until his death almost 70 years later, ...

When John Quincy Adams left the White House after his defeat in the election of 1828, he thought his public life had ended. His wife, Louisa Catherine Adams, welcomed the change because she disliked ...

After John Wood and Willard Keyes settled on the eastern bank of the Mississippi River in the 1820s, they petitioned the Illinois Legislature to create “Adams County”, with their founding village of ...

Few presidents have been as intelligent and eclectically versed as John Quincy Adams. One of his favorite endeavors was viewing celestial objects and events in space. While European countries ...

For some people, becoming president of the United States marks the apex of their ambition. However, it is not always the high point of their careers in public service. Perhaps the clearest examples of ...