Second Annual Law Day Breakfast

1. Second Annual Law Day Breakfast The Legacy of John Adams From Boston to Guantanamo Weld County Bar Association

2. Did you know… Adams was a teacher and a lawyer prior to entering a life of politics

3. John Adams was the oldest living President He lived 247 days longer than any other President in History

4. Adams died on the 50th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson, a very close friend and colleague, died just hours before Adams.

5. John Adams and his family were the first to ever live in the White House

6. Adams is solely responsible for the first fireworks display at the White House

7. Did you know… John Adams was the first Vice-President to be elected to President

8. Adams’ nickname was “Father of the American Navy”

9. Fun Fact John Adams served in the Continental Congress from 1774-1778

10. John Adams had a pet….. Can you guess what it was? An Alligator!

11. Adams entered Harvard Law School at the age of 15. He graduated when he was 20.

12. He Said It… “The rich, the well-born and the able should be set apart from other men in a senate.” - John Adams

13. Fun Fact John Adams, along with John Jay, was a key negotiator of the peace treaty with Great Britain signed November 30, 1782

14. Adams had four children with wife Abigail. His son John Quincy Adams followed in his footsteps as President

15. Did you know? John Adams was admitted to the bar in 1758 Adams was practically the opposite of George Washington in terms of personality. Where Washington was outgoing and community minded, Adams was known to be impetuous, intense and often vehement. Adams political career began when he became the leader of the Massachusetts Whigs

16. Did you know… Adams seconded the nomination of George Washington as the Commander-in-Chief of the Army.

17. Did you know… Adams seconded a resolution that “these colonies are, and of a right ought to be, free and independent states.”

18. As a direct result he was appointed the next day – on June 8, 1776, to a committee with Jefferson, Franklin, Livingston and Sherman to draft the Declaration of Independence.

19. He Said It… “Fear is the foundation of most governments.” - John Adams

20. Fun Fact John Adams served as president from 1797-1801

21. He Said It… “Liberty cannot be preserved without general knowledge among the people.” - John Adams

22. He Said It… “Old minds are like old horses; you must exercise them if you wish to keep them in working order.” - John Adams

24. Fun Fact He retired after losing the election for President in 1800; a loss caused in part by the disapproval of the Alien and Sedition Act passed while he was in office

25. He Said It… “Democracy... while it lasts is more bloody than either aristocracy or monarchy. Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There is never a democracy that did not commit suicide.” - John Adams

26. Did you know… John Adams would very rarely ever shake someone’s hand

27. He Said It… “If we do not lay out ourselves in the service of mankind whom should we serve?” - John Adams

28. Fun Fact John Adams was a member of the convention which framed the Massachusetts constitution of 1780, still the organic law of that commonwealth. With James Bowdoin and Samuel Adams, he formed a sub-committee which drew up the first draft of that instrument, and most of it probably came from John Adams's pen.

29. He Said It… “Because power corrupts, society's demands for moral authority and character increase as the importance of the position increases.” - John Adams

30. Did you know… John Adams defended several British Soldiers who were arrested in the Boston Massacre His outstanding defense of the soldiers – which resulted in their acquittal – was a key to his being elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

31. He Said It… “Let us tenderly and kindly cherish, therefore, the means of knowledge. Let us dare to read, think, speak, and write.” - John Adams

32. Did you know… John Adams retired to his family farm and worked hands on, side by side, with his employees

33. Fun Fact Adams rode horseback until he was 85 years old

34. Fun Fact Once fierce rivals, Jefferson and Adams spent the last several years of their lives writing hundreds of letters to each other. They parted as very close friends

35. He Said It… “Whether they be old or young, rich or poor, high or low, wise or foolish, ignorant or learned, every individual is seen to be strongly actuated by a desire to be seen, heard, talked of, and approved and respected!” - John Adams

36. Fun Fact Adams was, at his core, an author, communicator and defender – often arguing unpopular opinions merely to see if he could bend his mind to the task in such a way as to unnerve his opponents and ultimately win the day.

37. Adams was 28 when he married his wife Abigail. She was his third cousin

38. Adams often wrote letters to his wife Abigail.

39. John Adams last, whispered words, were “Jefferson Survives” He never knew that Jefferson had passed away just hours before

40. He Said It… “The essence of a free government consists in an effectual control of rivalries.” - John Adams

41. Fun Fact While moving his family to occupy the White House, Adams and his family got lost in the woods for several hours

42. They moved into the White House while the walls were still wet with paint

43. They had to burn 7 cords of wood to dry the freshly painted walls

44. He Said It… “A desire to be observed, considered, esteemed, praised, beloved, and admired by his fellows is one of the earliest as well as the keenest dispositions discovered in the heart of man.” - John Adams

46. John Adams 1735 - 1826 Weld County Bar Association