Adams Family Correspondence, volume 12
th.1798
I presume Dear Madam that I Shall receive Your pardon by Complying with the request of Mr. Charles Bulfinch, to be the bearer of a Letter of Mine to You— his wish without doubt is to be Noticed in Your family, as an acquaintance of this.— his Merrits Need Not be Mention’d as they are well known— He is Now imploy’d (And his expences paid) by a Number of Gentlemen, to veiw the Banks in Your City And those in New York.—
The inside work is his Object. to Make a through investigation of it, And then return to improve if he can, upon one for this State—1
Your Noticing him in a family way, will be exceeding pleasing to him, and his Connections, as well as gratifying to Your friend, who Anticipates the pleasure—She expects In the Approaching Summer by the return Of those friends She So highly Values.—
I can Now only wish that every blessing May decend On You And Yours, And that each May long injoy the Aplause due to their Superiour Merrits.—
If Mrs. Smith is with you pray Offer My warm regards, also to Your Amiable Neice—with those Of Mr Storer to the President And his Esteemed Lady.
The Young Ladies desire to join their respects with those. / Dear Madam from / Your Sincere friend
P. S. Your friends this way are in usual health— pray let Miss Smith know that her Sister drank Tea with Me Not long Since and was very well— My love to Mrs. Otis and family—
RC (Adams Papers).
Charles Bulfinch’s tour of the New York and Philadelphia branches of the Bank of the United States was in conjunction with his work on the Boston branch. Located on State Street, the neoclassical building opened in Dec. 1798 and was described as “the neatest public building in the state.” It was demolished in 1824 (Kenneth Hafertepe, “Banking Houses in the United States: The First Generation, 1781–1811,” Winterthur Portfolio, 35:36–38 [Spring 2000]; Philadelphia Gazette, 25 Dec. 1797; Asher Benjamin and Daniel Raynerd, The American Builder’s Companion, Boston, 1806, p. 65; Boston Columbian Centinel, 19 Dec. 1798).
In her reply of 21 March, AA noted her 435 regret that Bulfinch had so little time to spend in Philadelphia and applauded his work to design more beautiful buildings for Massachusetts. She cautioned, however, that many private citizens had exceeded the bounds of economy and sense in building homes for themselves. She also criticized the inaction of Congress and the efforts to repeal bills from the previous session (Adams Papers).