, the second President of the United States, was a lifelong resident of Quincy, Massachusetts. In 1822, when he was in his eighties, he made several bequests to the town of Quincy. One gave to the town land and funding for the construction of the First Parish Church, one concerned the disposition of part of his personal library, and the third was for the establishment of a local school. The third bequest included the donation of of land in Quincy center, called for the construction of a stone building, and gave advice to future schoolmasters on curriculum and teaching methods. Adams established the Adams Temple and School Fund to manage these properties. Although the church was constructed first in 1828, the school took some time to develop, owing to its small endowment. By 1868 the endowment had grown large enough to begin work on the school, and Adams' grandson Charles Francis Adams, Sr., a supervisor of the Fund, invited architect Henry Van Brunt to design a suitable building. The Fund board approved Brunt's plans in January 1870, and the building was completed that year at a cost of $29,000.
Adams Academy opened its doors in 1872, and operated until 1908; its peak enrollment was 140 students in 1876–77. The school was modeled after its football rivals, Phillips Academy and Phillips Exeter Academy. There was a strong emphasis placed on the classics, and Adams students were prepared to attend Harvard. By the early twentieth century, however, public schools in the area had improved, and there was competition from other private academies. Due to lack on enrollment, Adams Academy was closed in 1908.
Later uses of the building
After the Academy closed, the Adams Temple and School Fund sought other uses for the building that were in keeping with John Adams' original bequest. For a number of years it was used by a variety of civic organizations, including the Boy Scouts, American Legion, and the Red Cross. Although it was first proposed in 1934, only in 1972 was the building leased to the Quincy Historical Society, which is now its tenant. The Society uses the building as a museum and to house its library, uses deemed by the Fund trustees to be in keeping with John Adams' original intentions.
