ABSTRACT
A volley of cannon shots announced the arrival of the Lucretia into the Boston Harbor on May 7, 1788, and Governor John Hancock hurried to the docks to welcome home the Adamses and their entourage. Following this auspicious reception, Abigail and John stayed only briefly in Boston, eager to return to Quincy and to settle into their new home. There, they were disappointed to discover that the house, which had been purchased for them in their absence, had not been well cared for. Their immediate task, once their furnishings arrived from England, was to make the residence livable.
