Great American men have always understood the importance of women. John Adams described them as "the most infallible barometer...of morality and virtue in a nation." And Daniel Webster said the "promulgation of sound morals" was a woman's contribution to "the preservation of a free government."

Wives of the Signers dexribes those women who, alongside their husbands, experienced the trials and triumphs of the struggle for independence and the challenge of building a new nation. Who were they?

Abigail Smith Adams, wife of one president, mother of another, and perhaps the most influential woman of her day;