Encountering John Adams: Boston and Braintree

FAIN: BI-50082-08

Boston College (Chestnut Hill, MA 02467-3800)
Marc K. Landy (Project Director: March 2008 to September 2010)

Two week long workshops will explore the life and thought of John Adams and his significance in American political and constitutional history. Participants will immerse themselves in the original documents written by or to Adams that are housed at the Massachusetts Historical Society and or the commentaries he wrote into his books that are housed at the Boston Public Library. They will also visit the three houses that Adams lived in that comprise the Adams National Historic Park and tour the landmarks in downtown Boston where he conducted his legal practice and engaged in revolutionary political activities. In order to provide a thread of analytic and chronological continuity and to better able participants to consolidate their learning and and share their findings and ideas, they will participate in four seminars each of which will emphasize a different stage of Adams' life and career.