General Joseph Dwight (17031765) was a military and civil leader and judge in the British American Province of Massachusetts Bay.

Life

Joseph Dwight was born in Hatfield, Massachusetts on October 16, 1703. He graduated from Harvard College in 1722Life and times of Judge Joseph Dwight and his children
/ref> and was admitted to the bar in Worcester in 1733. He was the first member of the Worcester Country Bar.book about History of the Judiciary of Massachusetts
/ref> He was eleven times a member of the Massachusetts Colonial Council between 1731 and 1751, and its speaker from 1748-9. During this time, he had become a colonel of the militia. He became the brigadier general on 20 February 1745, and was second in command at the attack on Louisburg in that year, where he led, in person, the "Ancient and honorable company of artillery of Boston," General William Pepperrell commended Joseph Dwight for his courage and skill. In 1756, he commanded a brigade of

Massachusetts militia This is a list of militia units of the Colony and later Commonwealth of Massachusetts. *Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts (1638) *Cogswell's Regiment of Militia (April 19, 1775) *Woodbridge's Regiment of Militia (April 20, ...

, at Lake Champlain, in the French and Indian War. In 1752, he moved to

Stockbridge, Massachusetts Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County in Western Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,018 at the 2020 census. A year-round resort area, Stockbridge is h ...

, to act as Trustee of "the Indian Schools," a position he held when

Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards may refer to: Musicians *Jonathan and Darlene Edwards, pseudonym of bandleader Paul Weston and his wife, singer Jo Stafford *Jonathan Edwards (musician) (born 1946), American musician ** ''Jonathan Edwards'' (album), debut album ...

was also at work there as a missionary (1751-8) to that settlement of whites and Christianized Ingenious. Joseph Dwight remained on the bench as Chief Justice of the Berkshire County Court of Common Pleas until his death. He married Mary Pynchon and they had nine children. Their daughter Dorothy Dwight married Jedediah Foster (1726–1779). Joseph Dwight built a house at Great Barrington which still stands, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. He was one of the leading men when it came to the management of town business, and in giving direction to inhabitants. He died on June 9, 1765. By the time of his death, he was patriarch of a large branch of the New England Dwight family.

References

External links

Foster Family Autograph Collection
*List of children and details Joseph Dwight: {{DEFAULTSORT:Dwight, Joseph 1703 births 1765 deaths People from Hatfield, Massachusetts People of colonial Massachusetts People of Massachusetts in the French and Indian War Military personnel from colonial Massachusetts Harvard College alumni People from Stockbridge, Massachusetts