Louisa Catherine : The Other Mrs. Adams / Margery M. Heffron; David L. Michelmore.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Heffron, Margery M., Author.

Contributor:

Michelmore, David L., Editor.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Adams, Louisa Catherine, 1775-1852.

Adams, Louisa Catherine.

Adams, John Quincy, 1767-1848.

Adams, John Quincy.

Presidents' spouses--United States--Biography.

Presidents' spouses.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (429 p.)

Place of Publication:

New Haven, CT : Yale University Press, [2014]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams, wife and political partner of John Quincy Adams, became one of the most widely known women in America when her husband assumed office as sixth president in 1825. Shrewd, intellectual, and articulate, she was close to the center of American power over many decades, and extensive archives reveal her as an unparalleled observer of the politics, personalities, and issues of her day. Louisa left behind a trove of journals, essays, letters, and other writings, yet no biographer has mined these riches until now. Margery Heffron brings Louisa out of the shadows at last to offer the first full and nuanced portrait of an extraordinary first lady. The book begins with Louisa's early life in London and Nantes, France, then details her excruciatingly awkward courtship and engagement to John Quincy, her famous diplomatic success in tsarist Russia, her life as a mother, years abroad as the wife of a distinguished diplomat, and finally the Washington, D.C., era when, as a legendary hostess, she made no small contribution to her husband's successful bid for the White House. Louisa's sharp insights as a tireless recorder provide a fresh view of early American democratic society, presidential politics and elections, and indeed every important political and social issue of her time.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

1. Halcyon Days

2. Ready for Love

3. Destined for Greatness

4. A Fine Romance

5. At Home and Abroad

6. In Sickness and in Health

7. A Native in a Strange Land

8. Wandering Fortunes

9. A Fleeting Fairy Tale

10. Dark Days on the Baltic

11. The Journey of a Lifetime

12. Little Boston House

13. Campaign

14. A Beautiful Plan

List of Abbreviations

Johnson Family Tree

Chronology

Notes

Index

Notes:

Includes index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 24. Apr 2020)

ISBN:

9780300206906

0300206909

OCLC:

878109270