Author: Dexter, Samuel
Biography:
DEXTER, Samuel (1761-1816: WBIS)
The son of a prosperous Boston merchant, Samuel Dexter, and his wife Hannah (Sigourney) Dexter, he graduated from Harvard in 1781 and was called to the bar in Worcester County in 1784. In 1786, he married Catherine Gordon of Charlestown; they had at least one child, Franklin Dexter. Dexter entered politics as a member of the State House of Representatives for Charlestown in 1788, then became a Congressman and Senator in Washington. From 1800 to 1802 he was a cabinet minister under Adams, first as Secretary of War and then as Secretary of the Treasury. At the change of government, he resumed his career as a high-profile barrister while maintaining an active interest in political causes. He died in Athens NY. (DAB; Appleton) HJ