Dwight Foster

Who was Dwight Foster?

Dwight Foster graduated from Yale College 1848, where he was a member of Skull and Bones, and was admitted to the bar in Massachusetts the following year. He served as Massachusetts Attorney General, 1861–1864; and a justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, 1866–1869. He married Henrietta Perkins Baldwin, the daughter of Connecticut Governor & US Senator Roger Sherman Baldwin. Their son Roger Sherman Baldwin Foster was a prominent lawyer.

He was the son of Alfred Dwight Foster, who was a representative on the Massachusetts General Court, and was involved with various civic organizations including the Worcester town council, Massachusetts Governor’s Council, Leicester Academy, Amherst College, the State Lunatic Asylum, and the State Reform School.

His grandfather Judge Dwight Foster was a Representative and a Senator from Massachusetts; born in Brookfield, Worcester County, Mass., December 7, 1757; completed preparatory studies and graduated from Brown University, Providence, R.I., in 1774; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1778 and commenced practice in Providence, R.I.; justice of the peace for Worcester County 1781–1823; special justice of the court of common pleas 1792; sheriff of Worcester County 1792; member, State house of representatives 1791–1792; elected to the Third and to the three succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1793, to June 6, 1800, when he resigned; chairman, Committee on Claims; delegate to the State constitutional convention in 1799; elected to the United States Senate as a Federalist to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Samuel Dexter and served from June 6, 1800, to March 2, 1803, when he resigned; chief justice of the court of common pleas 1801–1811; member, State house of representatives 1808–1809; member of the Governor’s council and held other state and local offices chief justice of Worcester County, Massachusetts, a member of the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention, the Massachusetts State Legislature, and the Massachusetts Executive Council, and was a U.S. senator serving as a Federalist from 1800 to 1803.