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02 - John Adams Episodes

The intro and outro music for the John Adams episodes unless otherwise stated is from “Hail, Columbia” as performed by the US Navy Band. The full recording can be found at Wikipedia. The song was originally called “The President’s March” and was composed for Washington’s first inaugural. More information about the history of “Hail, Columbia” can be found at Wikipedia.

Dec. 16, 2018

2.11 – The Opposition Strikes Back

Year(s) Discussed: 1798 With yellow fever raging in Philadelphia, the federal government has to move once more, adding to the headaches of Secretary of War James McHenry who had his position in the Cabinet already being u…

Dec. 2, 2018

2.10 – Checkmate: Hamilton

Year(s) Discussed: 1798 Adams quickly comes to regret his naming George Washington as commander-in-chief of the US Army when Washington decides to appoint Alexander Hamilton as his second in command. As the threat of war …

Nov. 25, 2018

2.095 – Abigail Adams

Year(s) Discussed: 1744-1818 This special episode is all about the life and times of Abigail Smith Adams, the learned woman from Weymouth who became the second First Lady of the United States. Returning to the show to sha…

Nov. 18, 2018

2.09 – All Around and Away They Go

Year(s) Discussed: 1797-1799 As the events of the Haitian Revolution start to involve the US and the Army works to secure control of the Mississippi Territory from the Spanish, Adams and the Federalists work to determine …

Nov. 4, 2018

2.08 – Have At Thee! The Response to XYZ

Year(s) Discussed: 1797-1798 As the Adams administration learns of the XYZ Affair and the President works to determine his next course of action, partisan bickering devolves to a fight on the floor of the House of Represe…

Oct. 21, 2018

2.07 – One Hand Washes the Other: The XYZ Affair

Year(s) Discussed: 1797-1798 The three commissioners sent by Adams arrive in France to begin negotiations but find themselves beset with new characters and new circumstances following French victories in the field and a c…

Oct. 7, 2018

2.06 – Scandals and Observations

Year(s) Discussed: 1792-1797 Adams is joined in Philadelphia by his wife Abigail as he tries to balance war and peace with the first of the original six frigates of the US Navy being launched around the time that he appoi…

Sept. 23, 2018

2.05 – Et Tu, France?

Year(s) Discussed: 1796-1797 News arrives in Philadelphia of the French government refusing to accept Charles Cotesworth Pinckney as the US Minister to France, and various individuals both inside and outside the Adams adm…

Sept. 9, 2018

2.04 – Hither and Yon: The News From Abroad

Year(s) Discussed: 1783-1797 In this episode, we get caught up on the international situation around the time of Adams’s inauguration and the various issues that conditions beyond its borders bring up for the United State…

Aug. 26, 2018

2.03 – The New Sheriff in Town

Year(s) Discussed: 1796-1797 The election of 1796 results in John Adams becoming the nation’s second chief executive, but he quickly finds more questions than answers awaiting him on the path to taking the oath of office.…

July 22, 2018

2.02 – Adams Pre-Presidency Part Two

Year(s) Discussed: 1773-1797 As the Revolution against Great Britain kicks off, John Adams assumes office in the Continental Congress where he makes a name for himself with individuals from the various colonies before bei…

July 4, 2018

2.01 – Adams Pre-Presidency

Year(s) Discussed: 1638-1772 A new series starts here! From his beginnings on a farm in Braintree, Massachusetts, John Adams set off on a path of learning that would take him through Harvard College and into the practice …