Samuel Dexter

Samuel Dexter
3rd United States Secretary of the Treasury
In office January 1, 1801 – May 13, 1801
President	John Adams Thomas Jefferson
Preceded by	Oliver Wolcott
Succeeded by	Albert Gallatin
4th United States Secretary of War
In office June 1, 1800 – January 31, 1801
President	John Adams
Preceded by	James McHenry
Succeeded by	Henry Dearborn
United States Senator from Massachusetts
In office March 4, 1799 – May 30, 1800
Preceded by	Theodore Sedgwick
Succeeded by	Dwight Foster
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 1st district
In office March 4, 1793 – March 4, 1795
Preceded by	Fisher Ames
Succeeded by	Theodore Sedgwick
Personal details
Born	May 14, 1761(1761-05-14) Boston, Massachusetts Bay
Died	May 4, 1816(1816-05-04) (aged 54) Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Political party	Federalist Party
Alma mater	Harvard University
Profession	Lawyer
Signature

Samuel Dexter (May 14, 1761 – May 4, 1816) was an early American statesman who served both in Congress and in the Presidential Cabinet.

Life

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, to the Rev. Samuel Dexter, the 4th minister of Dedham, he graduated from Harvard University in 1781 and then studied law at Worcester under Levi Lincoln, Sr., the future Attorney General of the United States. After he passed the bar in 1784, he began practicing in Lunenburg, Massachusetts.

He was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives and served 1788 to 1790. He was elected to the 3rd Congress by way of the United States House of Representatives and then elected as Federalist to the United States Senate. In December 1799, he memorably wrote the memorial eulogy to George Washington upon the first president's death. His house in Dedham stands to today.

He served for less than a year as he was appointed United States Secretary of War by President John Adams in 1800. During his time at this station he urged congressional action to permit appointment and compensation of field officers for general staff duty.

Upon Secretary of the Treasury Oliver Wolcott, Jr.'s resignation in December 1800, Adams appointed Dexter as interim Secretary. He then briefly conducted the affairs of the War Office. He administered the oath of office to Chief Justice John Marshall, and later declined the ambassadorship to Spain.

He returned to Boston in 1805 and resumed the practice of law. He left the Federalist party to espouse Republican views on the War of 1812, and he was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of Massachusetts in 1814 and 1815. He was an ardent supporter of the temperance movement and presided over its first formal organization in Massachusetts.

He died on May 4, 1816 shortly before his 55th birthday and is buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Simon Newton Dexter was his nephew.

Samuel W. Dexter, founder of Dexter, Michigan, was his son.

Namesake

The USRC Dexter (1830) was named in his honor.

External links

• Samuel Dexter at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress Retrieved on 2009-5-20
• "Samuel Dexter". Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6304729. Retrieved 2009-5-20. 

An article in the History of Dedham series
1635–1792 1793–1999 2000–present TV and film
Topics
Fisher Ames Louis D. Brandeis Samuel Dexter Fairbanks House Jonathan Fairbanks Jason Fairbanks Horace Mann Mother Brook Old Avery Oak Tree Sacco and Vanzetti Horse Thief Society

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Fisher Ames	Member of the House of Representatives Massachusetts's 1st congressional district 1793–1795	Succeeded by Theodore Sedgwick
United States Senate
Preceded by Theodore Sedgwick	Senator from Massachusetts (Class 2) 1799–1800 Served alongside: Benjamin Goodhue	Succeeded by Dwight Foster
Political offices
Preceded by James McHenry	United States Secretary of War Served under: John Adams 1800–1801	Succeeded by Henry Dearborn
Preceded by Oliver Wolcott, Jr.	United States Secretary of the Treasury Served under: John Adams, Thomas Jefferson 1801	Succeeded by Albert Gallatin