John Quincy

Colonel John Quincy (July 21, 1689 – July 13, 1767) was an American soldier, politician and member of the Quincy political family. His granddaughter Abigail Adams named her son, John Quincy Adams, after him. The city of Quincy, Massachusetts is named after him.^[1]

Early life

John Quincy was born in Boston, Massachusetts to Daniel Quincy (1651–1690) and Anna Shepard (1663–1708). Shortly after his birth, the family moved to Braintree, Massachusetts and established a homestead at Mount Wollaston, or Merry Mount, in what is present-day Quincy. Daniel died when John was one year old; his mother subsequently married the Reverend Moses Fiske. Quincy attended Harvard College, graduating in 1708.

Quincy's paternal grandparents were Edmund Quincy II (1628-1698) and his second wife, Elizabeth Gookin Eliot (1645–1700)(impossible - she would have been 5 or 6 years old; must have been Edmund's first wife, Johanna Hoar), who built the Dorothy Quincy House (1685). His paternal grandfather's father was Edmund Quincy (1602-1636), known as "the Puritan", was an early English settler of Massachusetts Bay Colony. His paternal grandmother's father was Daniel Gookin (1612–1687), a settler of Virginia and Massachusetts from Ireland.^[2]

When his maternal grandmother died in 1709, Quincy inherited Mt. Wollaston, an estate purchased by his great-grandfather, Captain William Tyng, one of Boston's wealthiest merchants, who had acquired the property and other lands from William Coddington (1601–1678), who was in exile.^[3]

Career

In 1717, he was elected to represent Braintree at the Massachusetts General Court, was re-elected in 1719, and served in that capacity until 1740. From 1729 to 1741, he served as the Speaker of the House. In 1741, Quincy was voted out of office, but was returned there in 1744, where he served four additional years.^[3]

Personal life

John Quincy's Grave

On September 3, 1715 he married Elizabeth Norton (1696–1769), daughter of the Reverend John Norton of Hingham. Although officially only achieving the rank of major in the British army, he was commonly referred to as "Colonel". Together they had:

• Norton Quincy (1716–1801), who married Martha Salisbury (1727–1748)
• Anna Quincy (1719–1799), married John Thaxter (1721–1802)
• Elizabeth Quincy (1721–1775), who married William Smith (1707-1783).^[4]
• Lucy Quincy (1729–1785), married Cotton Tufts (1732–1815)

He died on 13 July 1767 at the age of 77, only two days after the birth of his namesake, John Quincy Adams, and one month before the duty on tea had been imposed by Act of Parliament of June 14, 1767.^[3]

Descendants

His granddaughter Abigail Adams (1744–1818), daughter of Elizabeth and the eventual First Lady of the United States, named her son, John Quincy Adams (1767–1848), after him. Adams went on to become the 6th President of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He also served as a diplomat, a Senator and member of the United States House of Representatives.^[5]

Honors

The city of Quincy, Massachusetts is named after him.^[1]

References

Notes

Sources

• Wilson, Daniel Munro, and Charles Francis Adams. John Quincy, Master of Mount Wollaston. Boston: George H. Ellis Company, 1909.