The Adams Memorial is a proposed United States presidential memorial on the

National Mall The National Mall is a Landscape architecture, landscaped park near the Downtown, Washington, D.C., downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. It contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institu ...

to honor

Founding Father The following is a list of national founders of sovereign states who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e., political system ...

and second

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

and his legacy. The

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

has created the Adams Memorial Commission to oversee the planning and construction of the Memorial. Commissioner Jackie Gingrich Cushman serves as the Chairman of the Adams Memorial Commission.

History

On November 5, 2001, the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

enacted a bill for the establishment of a "commemorative work...to honor former President John Adams and his legacy." The Memorial is to honor both John Adams and the other members of the Adams Family renowned for public service: his wife and prolific writer

Abigail Adams Abigail Adams ( ''née'' Smith; – October 28, 1818) was the wife and closest advisor 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 was a founder o ...

; their son, the sixth U.S. President

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...

; his wife Louisa Catherine Adams; their son,

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

diplomat, politician, and editor Charles Francis Adams, Sr.; and Charles' two sons, noted historian and autobiographer

Henry Adams Henry Brooks Adams (February 16, 1838 – March 27, 1918) was an American historian and a member of the Adams political family, descended from two U.S. presidents. As a young Harvard graduate, he served as secretary to his father, Charles Fran ...

and academician Brooks Adams. Congress authorized the Adams Memorial Foundation to be the sponsor responsible for the planning and construction of the Memorial. The Foundation was given permission to raise private funds to construct the Adams Memorial on federal land in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Once established, the Memorial was to be turned over to the federal government. On December 2, 2002, Congress amended this legislation to permit the Adams Memorial to be constructed within Area 1, the central core of the District of Columbia centered on the

. The Commemorative Works Clarification and Revision Act of 2003 (CWCRA) gave the Adams Memorial Foundation seven years to raise funds and begin construction. With construction not yet begun, Congress passed legislation on October 30, 2009, extending the deadline to September 30, 2010. On May 24, 2010, Congress again extended the deadline to December 2, 2013. Authorization for the Adams Memorial expired on December 2, 2013 without construction having begun. At a 2014 Senate hearing before the Subcommittee on National Parks, the Adams Memorial Foundation was praised for having worked diligently on the Memorial. Congress again reauthorized the Memorial on Dec. 19, 2014, extending the deadline to December 2, 2020. With construction still not begun, in March of 2019 Congress established the Adams Memorial Commission to oversee the planning and construction of the Memorial.PL 116-9, https://www.congress.gov/116/plaws/publ9/PLAW-116publ9.pdf.

The Adams Memorial Commission

The Adams Memorial Commission is a Congressional Commission which consists of 4 members of the House of Representatives, 4 Senators, and 4 civilians appointed by the President of the United States. The Memorial Commission is responsible for site selection, design, permitting, and construction of the Memorial. In the fall of 2020, President Trump made two of four presidential appointments, Timothy Harleth and Jackie Gingrich Cushman, daughter of former U.S. House Speaker

Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the List of speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1 ...

. In March of 2023, President Biden made the remaining two presidential appointments, Major General Peter Cooke and Richard Houghton. In December of 2023, Speaker Mike Johnson appointed four members of the House of Representatives to serve on the Commission: Rep. Morgan Griffith of Virginia, Rep. John Moolenar of Michigan, Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts, and Rep. Gerry Conolly of Virginia. The four Senatorial members of the Commission are yet to be appointed. Since the appointment of a majority of its members, the Commission has met several times. At its first meeting in January of 2024, Commissioner Cushman was made Chairman, and Commissioner Cooke was made Vice Chairman. The Commission has since re-created the Adams Memorial Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation established to raise private funds and awareness for the Memorial. Commissioner Cushman serves as President of the Adams Memorial Foundation.Adams Memorial Foundation Website, https://theadamsmemorial.org/news/adams-memorial-commission-appointed-foundation-created/. Pursuant to its authorizing statute, the Commission is to produce an end-of-year report before the close of 2024.

References

External links

* : Public Law 107-62, establishing the Foundation * : Public Law 116-9, reconstituting commission with 2025 expiration date in Section 2406. {{authority control Adams family Proposed monuments and memorials in the United States John Adams John Quincy Adams

History

The Adams Memorial Commission

See also

References

External links