John Adams was born in 1735 to Henry and Susanna Boylston Adams. Adams graduated from Harvard University in 1755 and became an attorney in 1758. From an early age, Adams developed intense feelings for political causes. He wrote powerful speeches against the Stamp Act of 1765, but also defended British soldiers charged with murder after the Boston Massacre.

In 1771, Adams was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives and later, to the Continental Congress in 1774. Adams carried great influence among the members of Congress and strongly favored separation from England. Adams also assisted in the drafting of the Declaration of Independence and the Massachusetts Constitution. After spending several years negotiating business treaties with European powers at the conclusion of the Revolutionary War, Adams was elected as the second president of the United States (he lost to George Washington previously). His presidency, however, was marred by the passage of the Alien and Sedition Acts, controversy within his Federalist party regarding foreign policy, and a general feeling that Federalists relied more on the ideas of Alexander Hamilton than his. Adams was defeated by Thomas Jefferson in 1800 in his bid for a second term in the presidency.