The tiny Somerset village of Barton St David may only have about 550 inhabitants, but it has a unique boast. It was the home of Henry Adams, the ancestor of two US Presidents – John Adams, the second President (1797-1801) and his son and sixth President, John Quincy Adams (1825-1829).
At least three generations of Henry Adams’ ancestors had lived in Barton St David. Henry was born there, probably in 1583, the son of John and Agnes Adams. He married Edith Squire at nearby Charlton Mackrell Church on 19 October 1609, and later moved to Kingweston, where several of their children were baptised. In 1638 the family emigrated, probably from Plymouth, to New England, though their motivation – whether family, economic, religious or other – remains unknown.
There had long been controversy as to the location of the Adams family’s English roots. A plaque in Quincy, Massachusetts, erected by future President, John Adams, claimed it was Devon. Other candidates were Braintree in Essex, and Flore in Northamptonshire. Flore proved to be an embarrassing blunder for the American-based Sulgrave Institution, who, in 1923, bought the farm cottage alleged to be Henry’s birthplace, but, just over a year later, had publicly to admit their mistake.
Following this confusion, there was a desire to commemorate what was then accepted as the true English site of the Adams’ roots, and negotiations took place between the interested parties in the USA and the local church in Barton St David. Fortunately, there is an extensive archive of these negotiations in the Somerset Heritage Centre in Taunton.
As a result a fine memorial tablet was prepared in the USA, sent over to Somerset and installed in 1927 in the chancel wall. It can be seen today, flanked by two American flags, and is frequently visited by American tourists. Its inscription reads: “To the glory of God, in honour of St David and to the memory of HENRY ADAMS born in this parish about 1583 and a founder of New England 1638; ancestor of two Presidents of the United States of America, John Adams and John Quincy Adams, whose exalted services to their country evoke a testimony of respect for their ancestral home. This memorial has been erected by Edward Dean Adams. AD 1926.”
The Victoria County History of Somerset claims that “a reredos [an altar screen] and panelling were installed in the late 1920s by an American descendant of Henry Adams but have since been removed.” The 1920s correspondence also suggested that a memorial window would be installed in Henry’s memory, but this seems never to have happened.
As well as the two Adams Presidents, other more distant members of the wider Adams/Squire family include three other US Presidents, Millard Fillmore, William Howard Taft and Calvin Coolidge, as well as controversial American politician, Samuel Adams, a leading figure in the fight for American independence in the late 18th century, and who is now immortalised in the range of Boston beers named after him.
Not a bad haul for this small area of South Somerset.
© JB Seatrobe (Barry K Winetrobe & Janet Seaton) 2018. A version of this article was published originally in the Nov 2015 issue of the Somerset Leveller, #7.