John Quincy Adams goes skinny dipping
Part of the "Ain't American History Fun" Series
John Quincy Adams may have been the most highly educated and stiffly proper man ever to hold the presidency, but when it came to his 5:00 AM fitness routine, he was apparently fine with a dress code that consisted of absolutely nothing. While other presidents used the executive mansion as a place of business, Adams preferred to use the Potomac River as his personal bathtub. For most of his presidency, the "Leader of the Free World" was also the "Nakedest Man in D.C." every morning before sunrise.
The Presidential Plunge
Adams was famously a "cold water enthusiast." He believed that a brisk, sunrise swim in the often-frigid, and entirely public, Potomac River was the key to maintaining his vigorous health and keen intellect. For Adams, the only thing better than the constitutional balance of power was treading water while completely buff. He was the sitting President of the United States, and he was stripping down faster than a candidate changing their platform.
The "Unsinkable" Journalist
While D.C. knew of his habits, one person was determined to use his nudity against him—professionally. Enter Anne Royall, a fiercely persistent female journalist (an extreme rarity at the time) and a woman who absolutely refused to take "no" for an interview answer. Royall had spent months requesting a meeting with Adams. After being repeatedly stonewalled, she decided to ambush him where she knew he couldn't just walk away.
The Ultimate Interview Question
Royall waited in the darkness near his preferred swimming hole. When she saw the President strip and plunge into the water, she executed her "highly ethical" plan. Royall sat directly on his stack of clothes, smiled, and politely refused to move until Adams, still in the river, answered her questions.
Picture the scene: The sixth President of the United States, a world-class diplomat and intellectual, is treading water in a dark river, totally nude, while a female journalist holds his pants hostage from the bank. It was likely the highest-stakes interview Royall ever conducted.
Surrender by Exposure
Adams, knowing when he was beat—and also being very, very cold—grudgingly surrendered. He gave her the interview, potentially the only time a sitting U.S. President has provided exclusive economic commentary while frantically trying to keep his dignified bits below the water line. It serves as a reminder that before we had presidential debates, we had a journalist holding the President's clothes while he answered for his policies in his birthday suit.
Ain't American History fun?
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