The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery (NPG) in Washington, DC, has acquired the earliest known photograph of a US first lady.

I’m proud to announce my first Literary Contributors Hall of Fame class. But first, I want to thank everyone who has contributed to my email columns. You have no idea how much you mean to me.

John Adams was born on October 30, 1735, in Braintree, Massachusetts. His father, a farmer and deacon, hoped that Adams would enter the clergy, but his Harvard professors thought his propensity ...