John Adams Unbound marks the first public exhibition of the complete personal library of founding father and lifelong book collector, John Adams. This landmark event is the culmination of a three-year project by the Boston Public Library to catalog, preserve, digitize and provide access to the extraordinary personal library of America’s second president and was made possible by federal grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the General Services Administration (GSA). 

Designed by C&G Partners, New York, John Adams Unbound features more than 3,500 books from Adams’s personal library.  Held by the Boston Public Library since 1894, the John Adams collection is of particular historical importance because hundreds of books retain a permanent record of John Adams’s interactions with his library.  He read with a pen clasped firmly in hand, and scores of volumes contain Adams’s handwritten commentary in the margins. These private notes often represent a lively dialogue between Adams and the author, moments where he felt compelled during his reading to respond to the printed text with force, passion and his unique – and often testy – insights.  His books also feature original family signatures, acquisition dates, purchase amounts, drawings, inscriptions, and a wide variety of family bookplates, as well as loose manuscripts, newspaper clippings and handwritten indices.  

Believing at age 32 that an "ample and well chosen Assortment of Books" could serve a wide range of possible ends—Fame, Fortune, Power, God, Country, Clients and Fellow Men—John Adams began assembling one of the greatest private libraries in early America.  The extraordinary collection featured in John Adams Unbound is the culmination of the founding father's lifelong endeavor.  Visitors can explore Adams’s extensive library, his remarkable life, and his deeply personal reflections on his reading, his book collecting, and the many ends his library would serve. 

Exhibition Information:
Extended through April 29, 2007
Admission free
Exhibition open during all library hours

Guided Tours
Thursdays at 6 p.m. & Saturdays at 2 p.m.

John Adams Library Website:
www.johnadamslibrary.org

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