ADAMS, JOHN. (1735-1826). First Vice President and Second President of the United States. Free Franked Address Leaf Signed, “J Adams” One page, quarto. Addressed in secretarial hand to: “The honble. Judge Woodard Washington District of Columbia. Forwarded to “Pensacola Alabama” in third hand. Circular “Washington City Nov. 24” postal cancellation. Mounted to a larger leaf.

This John Adams free-franked address leaf was sent in November of 1825, a short seven months before the Founding Father’s death on July 4, 1826. In addition to being one of Adam’s last known franking signatures, this address leaf also relates to America’s expansion into the newly acquired Florida Territories during the 1820s. Our letter’s recipient, JUDGE AUGUSTUS WOODWARD [1774-1827), American jurist, author], was charged with overseeing the foundation of a legal system in the newly acquired territory by President Monroe in 1824, a task he was particularly well suited to undertake. Earlier in his career, Woodward had served on the Michigan Territorial Court (1805-1824) and as its first chief justice (1805-1824). It was during this period that he developed a series of statutes, the “Woodward Code,” which came to serve as the basis of Territorial Supreme Court legal procedures. Pensacola, in addition to serving as the governmental and legal center of the territory, was also home to the strategically located Pensacola Naval Yard, the first permanent U.S. Naval installation on the Gulf Coast and the most advanced Naval Yard in America at the time. Authorized for construction earlier in 1825, the Pensacola Naval Yard saw the construction and repair of some of the finest vessels in the American fleet, and stood where the Pensacola Naval Air Station, “The Cradle of Naval Aviation,” stands today. A fine piece from late in the life of John Adams relative to the expansion of the nation he helped create.

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