Abigail Playground

E 156 St bet. Tinton Av and Union Av

Bronx

This text is part of Parks’ Historical Signs Project and can be found posted within the park.

Abigail Adams (1744-1818), for whom this playground is named, was the wife of the second United States President, John Adams. Abigail Adams was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts, the daughter of Elizabeth Smith and Congregational minister William Smith. The Smiths descended from a wealthy family of Puritan leaders and prominent merchants. While growing up, she read extensively from the family library and was given a substantial education by her grandmother and her family's learned friends. Young Abigail developed a deep Congregational faith and a habit of letter writing, both characteristics she retained for the rest of her life. In 1764, Abigail married John Adams, an aspiring lawyer, following a five-year courtship. During their first decade of marriage, the couple produced four children and maintained houses in both Braintree and Boston, Massachusetts.