1st Influence: President and Lawyer

John Adams influenced many people by being a lawyer and the nations 2nd president. After graduating from Harvard, John Adams began studying law under James Putnam. In 1758 Adams returned to his parent’s home in Boston and began to practice law. John soon became one of the most noted lawyers in Boston. In 1770, Adams sense of justice led him to defend Captain Thomas Preston and the British soldiers charged with manslaughter for killing five townspeople in the Boston Massacre. Adams felt that the soldiers should be freed, because the mob had provoked them to fire. Adams did what he thought was right and eventually won the case. In the presidential campaign of 1796, Thomas Jefferson was Adams’s chief rival. John was elected president, taking office in March, 1797. The French were deeply angered at America, over the signing of Jay’s Treaty. Adams sought peace and kept America out of war with France. As president he considered it catalo to remain independent of party politics and the other branches of government. That political independence allowed Adams to remain true to his principals and prevented war with France, but damaged his political career.
Citations-
- "Adams, John (1735-1826)." UXL Biographies. Gale, 2003. Web. 25.Feb. 2010.
- Hutson, James H. “Adams, John” World Book Student. World Book, 2010. 25 Feb. 2010.
- "John Adams." American Eras, Volume 4. Gale, 1998. Web. 24 Feb. 2010.
Picture Cite- "Contagious Love Experiment." 2009. Web. 2 Mar. 2010.