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Primary sourceBook1850s (compiled)

The Works of John Adams, Volume 2

John Adams · 1850s (compiled)

A volume of John Adams's collected writings, including his diary, autobiography, and early essays, edited by his grandson.

This volume preserves Adams's own diary, autobiography, and essays in his own words.

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Dark brown embossed book cover with a raised ornamental scroll and foliate pattern in a central panel, framed by a thin border lines. The cloth texture is visible across the cover.
John Adams, The Works of John Adams (ed. Charles Francis Adams). John Adams Library, Boston Public Library.

About this source

What it is

This is one volume from The Works of John Adams, a multi-volume collection edited by his grandson Charles Francis Adams. It contains a biography of Adams, his diary with passages from his autobiography, and notes he took on debates in the Continental Congress in 1775-1776, plus early essays. It is held in the John Adams Library at the Boston Public Library.

Why it matters

This volume preserves Adams's own words, written in his own hand at the time, alongside later editorial work by his grandson. It shows both how Adams recorded his own life and how his family shaped his historical memory afterward.

Look closer

  • Why might a diary entry about an earthquake be the very first thing Adams wrote down?
  • What is the difference between reading Adams's own diary and reading his grandson's later biography of him?
  • What does the plain, worn cover tell you about how this book was used and preserved?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of John Adams on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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