Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation

Benjamin Franklin returned to America after Deborah’s death, but in 1776, less than two years later, he went to France as a diplomat. He greatly enjoyed his time there and the attention he received from the French, informing a friend, “Somebody, it seems, gave it out that I loved ladies; and then everybody presented me their ladies (or the ladies presented themselves) to be embraced, that is to have their necks kissed” (145). His sister, Jane Mecom, and his daughter, Sally, had a far less enjoyable time back in America, where they lived in constant fear of attack from the British and were forced to flee their home (having first ensured that Benjamin’s library was sent on ahead). Despite their difficult conditions, Benjamin rarely wrote to them while he reveled in his celebrity in France.

In 1778, John Adams also went on a diplomatic mission to France, and Abigail was again left to manage farm, family, and finances without him. Letters arrived infrequently, and many were lost on the way. John’s first letter took two months to reach Abigail, and when it did, she found it full of praise for the country and, especially, for how educated the women were. Abigail had long called for better education for American women, not always with the full support of her husband, so she was understandably angered by his sudden celebration of educated foreign women.