John Quincy Adams: A Featured Biography

John Q. Adams

The political career of John Quincy Adams was long and distinguished. The son of Abigail and John Adams, John Quincy was born in 1767, became a lawyer in 1787, and soon entered the political arena as a diplomat. He became a U.S. Senator in 1803, elected as a Federalist to represent the state of Massachusetts. Adams quickly established himself as an independent thinker with a willingness to break from party allegiance. In 1824, he became the sixth President of the United States, defeating Andrew Jackson in a controversial election. Following his presidency, John Quincy Adams returned to Congress, serving nearly seventeen years in the House of Representatives, where he earned the nickname "Old Man Eloquent." Adams suffered a stroke and died in the U.S. Capitol on February 23, 1848. His exceptional diary provides a revealing account of early American politics.

Vandenberg and Wagner Portraits Unveiled

South wall of Senate Reception Room with portraits in place

The U.S. Senate Commission on Art announces the unveiling of two new portrait murals in the Senate Reception Room of the United States Capitol. The portrait of Senator Arthur H. Vandenberg was executed by Tennessee artist Michael Shane Neal. Senator Robert F. Wagner’s portrait was completed by native New Yorker Seven Polson. The two images join the other distinguished former Senators-known as the “famous five”-already honored in the room.

John Quincy Adams, following the advice of his father, began writing a diary when he was a young boy and continued it until just before his death in 1848. His record of daily experiences and thoughts resulted in a unique and colorful chronicle of the era. Pulitzer Prize-winning political biographer Allan Nevins condensed material from the twelve volumes Adams composed to publish The Diary of John Quincy Adams, 1794-1845.