MASCOUTAH — During the America 250 celebration, a Sunday school class at Zion Lutheran Church in Mascoutah looked to colonial history as Margaret Truitt of the Looking Glass Prairie Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, portrayed Abigail Adams to share the story of Founding Father and President John Adams’ wife.
The presentation was part of the country’s 250th birthday celebration, which provides opportunities to reflect on people, places and things during colonial times. Marianne McDaniel, a Zion Lutheran Church Sunday school teacher, was seeking presenters for her “Persons of Faith” class series when Truitt agreed to take part.
Truitt enlisted the help of her visiting great-niece, Gwendolyn “Gwen” Loker of Montrose, Iowa. Truitt portrayed Abigail Adams, while Loker portrayed the Adamses’ daughter Amelia, nicknamed “Nabby.”
Together, the two shared information about Abigail and Nabby and demonstrated colonial games, including hoop and stick, quoits, and cup and ball.
Abigail Adams, née Smith, was born Nov. 22, 1744, or Nov. 11 under the Old Style calendar, and died Oct. 28, 1818. She was the wife and closest adviser of John Adams, the second president of the United States, and the mother of John Quincy Adams, the sixth president of the United States.
She is widely considered to be an influential figure in the founding of the United States. She was both the first second lady and second first lady of the United States, although such titles were not used at the time. She and Barbara Bush are the only two women in American history who were both the wife of a U.S. president and the mother of another U.S. president.
Adams’ life is one of the most documented of the first ladies. Many of the letters she wrote to John Adams while he was in Philadelphia as a delegate in the Continental Congress, before and during the Revolutionary War, document the closeness and versatility of their relationship. John Adams frequently sought Abigail Adams’ advice on many matters, and their letters are filled with intellectual discussions on government and politics.
“Abigail Adams, daughter of a minister, and her husband were prolific letter writers,” Truitt said. “Luckily, their correspondence has been preserved and provides a documented account of that time. Many thanks to Marianne for inviting me to share Abigail’s story.”
