By the end of 1763, John Adams was formally recognized as Abigail Smith’s husband-to-be. They began to plan a wedding – but then, in early 1764, there was a smallpox outbreak in Boston. The wedding was pushed off to the fall. In 1764, inoculation had grown in acceptance (although still quite controversial). In fact, there were areas which vehemently prohibited inoculation. Boston did not prohibit inoculation, and so in the spring of 1764, the entirety of the city began an inoculation process. John Adams himself went into quarantine with the other inoculees and wrote copious letters to Abigail from his confinement – These letters provide an invaluable picture of medical practices at that time. I love the “smallpox letters”. They’re fascinating.
Inoculation was still very risky. Many people became quite ill with it. John puts on a humorous pose as he goes into quarantine with many others, making jokes to Abigail, kidding about the bad food, the comical characters – but both of them knew the risks.
Anyway – just a bit of background for the “smallpox letters” above.
