Inside John Quincy Adams' Unusual Skinny-Dipping Routine

Perhaps it doesn’t matter what a powerful leader does in their personal life. But that does not stop people from being curious about public figures and those of the past. John Quincy Adams kept a journal for most of his life. One of the entries gives insight into his unusual morning routine. This routine included walking, reading, writing, and bathing in the Potomac River. He nearly lost his clothes from the tide on more than one occasion. Neal Millikan of the Massachusetts Historical Society explained that Adams was definitely not the only person who swam naked during the 1800s. In fact, sometimes others would join Adams in the water, as stated in his diary entries. His diary entries also explained that he saw health benefits from daily swimming, but others disagreed and believed it to be too strenuous (per Business Insider).

Regular skinny dipping likely did not negatively impact his health. Adams lived to be 80 years old and worked in government until the day he died. In 1848, he suffered a stroke right in the House of Representatives and died in the building.

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