On 17 June 1775, British and American forces clashed in what became known as the Battle of Bunker Hill. From the top of Penn’s Hill in nearby Braintree, Massachusetts, Abigail Adams and her seven-year-old son, John Quincy, witnessed the destruction. “I saw with my own eyes those fires, and heard Britannia's thunders in the Battle of Bunker's hill and witnessed the tears of my mother and mingled with them my own,” he later remembered (John Quincy Adams to Joseph Sturge, March 1846, Dft, Adams Family Papers).
Explore a selection of materials related to the Adamses and the Battle of Bunker Hill at the MHS:
Accounts of the Battle
News of the battle was raced to Philadelphia, where John Adams was attending the Continental Congress. Below are several contemporary accounts sent to him, along with his reflections.
Abigail Adams to John Adams, 18 June 1775, Adams Family Correspondence
Abigail Adams to John Adams, 25 June 1775, Adams Family Correspondence
Elbridge Gerry to the Massachusetts Delegates, 20 June 1775, Papers of John Adams
John Adams to James Warren, 27 June 1775, Papers of John Adams
Massachusetts Committee of Safety to Arthur Lee, 25 July 1775, enclosing "Account of the late Battle of Charlestown," Papers of John Adams
John Adams' reflections on the Battle of Bunker Hill, [August 1775], Diary and Autobiography of John Adams
Commemorations
Within a few years, the young nation began to commemorate the events of 17 June 1775.
John Quincy Adams, Diary, 17 June 1786, John Quincy Adams Digital Diary
Lucy Cranch to Abigail Adams, 24 June 1786, Adams Family Correspondence
The Marquis de Lafayette to John Adams, 12 February 1825, MHS Collections Online
John Quincy Adams, Diary, 17 June 1833, John Quincy Adams Digital Diary
John Quincy Adams, Diary, 17 June 1843, John Quincy Adams Digital Diary
Additional Resources
The Decisive Day is Come: The Battle of Bunker Hill
A Revolutionary Reunion: Lafayette and John Adams, Beehive Blog