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204:) was an American businessman noted for his eccentric behavior and writings. He became wealthy through marriage and a series of improbably successful investments, and spent his fortune lavishly. Though barely educated or literate, Dexter considered himself "the greatest philosopher in the known world", and authored a book,
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Some of Dexter's social contemporaries considered him very unintelligent; his obituary considered "his intellectual endowments not being of the most exalted stamp". Dexter attempted to burnish his own legacy by enlisting the efforts of
Jonathan Plummer, a fish merchant and amateur poet, who extolled
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In an effort to elevate his social status, Dexter began to write petitions supporting that he be considered for public office. It is thought that because of Dexter's multiple petitions, Newburyport's government decided that the best way to silence him was to give him the title of "Informer of Deer,"
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The
Timothy Dexter House was briefly converted into an inn shortly after Dexter's widow Elizabeth died in 1809, followed by a succession of private owners. In 1984, William Quill, a Newburyport local raised on Johnston St, purchased the house for $ 200,000 and restored it. As restoration works came
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in 1805. In the second edition, Dexter responded to complaints about the book's lack of punctuation by adding an extra page of 11 lines of punctuation marks with the instruction that printers and readers could insert them wherever needed—or, in his words, "thay may peper and solt it as they plese".
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After Dexter's death, a street that intersects the High St corner where the
Timothy Dexter House is located was named "Dexter Ln" in his honor. The first house built on the street was constructed in 1967. The Dexter Lane Project, a 16-unit affordable housing development, is currently planned to be
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Despite his good fortune, his relationship with his family suffered. He frequently told visitors that his wife (who was actually alive) had died, and that the woman frequenting the building was simply her ghost. In one notable episode, Dexter faked his own death to see how people would react, and
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valued his estate at $ 35,027.39 (roughly equivalent to $ 782,961 in 2023) at the time of Dexter's death in 1806. After his death, Dexter's
Newburyport house had its household furniture, gilt balls and many of the garden statuary auctioned off on 12 May 1807. The
407:, and his wife. The book contains 8,847 words and 33,864 letters, but without any punctuation and with unorthodox spelling and capitalization. Dexter also signs his name at the end of each chapter, as though they were letters. One section begins:
244:. He married 32-year-old Elizabeth Frothingham, a rich widow, and he then bought a mansion with the money. Dexter set up shop in the basement, selling moosehide trousers, gloves, hides and whale blubber. Elizabeth also opened a shop that sold
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278:—used to heat beds in the cold New England winters—for resale in the West Indies, a tropical area. This advice was a deliberate ploy by rivals to bankrupt him. His ship's captain sold them as ladles to the local
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While subject to ridicule, Dexter's boasting makes it clear that he understood the value of cornering the market on goods that others did not see as valuable and the utility of "acting the fool".
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293:". Fortuitously, he did so during a Newcastle miners' strike, and his cargo was sold at a premium. On another occasion, practical jokers told him he could make money by shipping gloves to the
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and currently on loan to the local Museum of Old
Newbury. In 2013, a pair of carved figurines that once adorned the house's entrance, titled "Peace" and "Plenty", were put on auction by an
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The Life of Lord
Timothy Dexter, with Sketches of the Eccentric Characters that Composed his Associates, including his own writings, "Dexter's Pickle for the knowing ones", &c., &c
369:, and himself. The last had the inscription, "I am the first in the East, the first in the West, and the greatest philosopher in the Western World". Dexter also bought an estate in
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that was worthless at the time. At the war's end, the U.S. government made good on its notes at one percent of face value, while
Massachusetts paid its own notes at
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226:. He was from a poor family of Irish immigrants who had moved to the new world the century before. He had little schooling and dropped out of school to work as a
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islands and again made a profit; Eastern missionaries were in need of the Bibles and the
Caribbean welcomed a solution to rat infestation. He also hoarded
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Life of Lord
Timothy Dexter: Embracing sketches of the eccentric characters that composed his associates, including "Dexter's Pickle for the knowing ones"
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close to completion, a blowtorch accident on 15 August 1988 caused a fire that gutted the building, but original blueprints preserved by the
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Ime the first Lord in the younited States of A mercary Now of
Newburyport it is the voise of the peopel and I cant Help it and so Let it goue
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industry and made a handsome profit. Next, Dexter sent wool mittens to the same place, where Asian merchants bought them for export to
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allowed the house to be rebuilt exactly as it was. The Timothy Dexter House remains the Quill family's private residence to this day.
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high society snubbed him. Dexter bought a large house in Newburyport from Nathaniel Tracy, a local socialite, and tried to emulate
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Complete transcription of "A Pickle for The Knowing Ones; or Plain Truths in a Homespun Dress" ~ with translation and annotations
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toppled most of the remaining statues, and the survivors were sold at another auction; some ended up being burned for firewood.
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The Official Virtual Seat on the "Noue Systom of Knollege & Lite" Assigned the Notable and Most Noble Lord Timothy Dexter
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Ultimately, fewer than six of the original 40 statues survived to the present day, being rediscovered during the
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Because he was largely uneducated, his business sense was considered peculiar. He was advised to send
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Wicked Weird & Wily Yankees: A Celebration of New England's Eccentrics and Misfits
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History of Newburyport, Mass., 1764–1905. Vol. II. Chapter XXVII. Eccentric characters
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auction house, but failed to meet the $ 40,000 reserve price expected by the seller.
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This article is about the American businessman. For the bear enthusiast, see
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survey; the most prominent one being that of William Pitt, restored by the
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702:"Lord Timothy Dexter of Newburyport, Massachusetts: Wealthy by Mistake?"
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for himself, and a garden of 40 wooden statues of famous men, including
571:. Vol. 8 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 141.
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NPR’s "Weekend Edition": The 'Literary' Legacy of Lord Timothy Dexter
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A pickle for the knowing ones: or, Plain truths in a homespun dress
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935:"Man who faced challenge restoring Lord Timothy Dexter's mansion"
1052:"The Ridiculous Timothy Dexter: Disappointed at His Own Funeral"
835:. Los Altos, California: William Kaufmann, Inc., 1981: p. 207.
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868:. Boston, Massachusetts: David Clapp & Son, 1886: p. 11.
821:. Newburyport: Dalcassian Publishing Company. p. 495.
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The Reader's Digest Book of Strange Stories, Amazing Facts
807:. Boston, Massachusetts: David Clapp & Son, 1886: 6.
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Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities
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883:"Timothy Dexter House in Newburyport, Massachusetts"
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by mistake, but ended up selling them profitably as
200:(January 22, 1747 – October 23, 1806) (self-styled
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728:. Boston: J. E. Tilton and Company. Archived from
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468:Lord Timothy Dexter House, as seen in October 2022
960:"Affordable Housing Trust - Dexter Lane Project"
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385:her for not sufficiently mourning his death.
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704:. Yahoo! Contributor Network. Archived from
255:, he purchased large amounts of depreciated
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36:American businessman and author (1747–1806)
377:about 3,000 people attended Dexter's mock
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596:The World's Greatest Cranks and Crackpots
271:since there were no deer in Newburyport.
1009:. S. A. Tucker. 36 pages. Archived from
909:"Bid too small for 'Peace' and 'Plenty'"
819:History of Newburyport, Mass., 1764–1905
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457:More precious far than gold that's pure,
1235:Writers from Newburyport, Massachusetts
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1003:Dexter, Timothy; Quince, Peter (1881).
747:Zanies: The World's Greatest Eccentrics
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1050:Mitchell, Robbie (December 13, 2022).
1215:Merchants from colonial Massachusetts
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881:Brooks, Rebecca (October 23, 2022).
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393:At age 50, Dexter authored the book
133:Uncommon good fortune, eccentricity
1225:People from colonial Massachusetts
1205:Burials at Old Hill Burying Ground
777:Stephen Gencarella (May 1, 2018).
700:Jim Stillman (November 15, 2006).
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1220:People from Malden, Massachusetts
1210:Businesspeople from Massachusetts
115:, Dexter Family Plot, Newburyport
1230:People who faked their own death
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1089:Works by or about Timothy Dexter
907:Rogers, Dave (August 13, 2013).
851:Timothy Dexter obituary notice,
933:Shea, Jack (January 29, 2018).
833:The Almanac of American Letters
783:. Globe Pequot. pp. 1–14.
530:Plain Truth in a Homespun Dress
459:Lord Dexter shine forevermore.
399:, in which he complained about
337:. He decorated this house with
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998:. Boston: J. E. Tilton and Co.
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1200:18th-century American writers
490:Works Progress Administration
453:Lord Dexter is a man of fame;
443:, Newburyport, Massachusetts.
396:A Pickle for the Knowing Ones
289:People jokingly told him to "
224:Province of Massachusetts Bay
207:A Pickle for the Knowing Ones
145:A Pickle for the Knowing Ones
79:Province of Massachusetts Bay
479:Great September Gale of 1815
474:Massachusetts Probate Office
455:Most celebrated is his name;
233:When he was 16, he became a
158:Elizabeth (Lord) Frothingham
18:Timothy Dexter (businessman)
645:Reader's Digest Association
441:"Lord" Timothy Dexter House
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751:. New Century Publishers.
253:American Revolutionary War
242:Newburyport, Massachusetts
101:Newburyport, Massachusetts
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817:Currier, John J. (1906).
743:Nash, Jay Robert (1982).
722:Knapp, Samuel L. (1858).
335:Tracy's prominent mansion
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1045:. New York: D. Appleton.
887:History of Massachusetts
1080:Works by Timothy Dexter
1036:"Dexter, Timothy"
964:City of Newburyport, MA
864:Todd, William Cleaves.
803:Todd, William Cleaves.
568:Encyclopædia Britannica
562:"Dexter, Timothy"
512:built at 14 Dexter Ln.
494:Smithsonian Institution
240:. In 1769, he moved to
113:Old Hill Burying Ground
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448:his patron in verse:
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415:The first edition was
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371:Chester, New Hampshire
291:ship coal to Newcastle
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732:on December 2, 2007.
421:Salem, Massachusetts
257:Continental currency
855:, October 24, 1806.
606:, pp. 147–151.
594:Margaret Nicholas,
218:Dexter was born in
202:Lord Timothy Dexter
1056:Historic Mysteries
853:Newburyport Herald
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363:Napoleon Bonaparte
345:on the top of the
251:At the end of the
1084:Project Gutenberg
841:978-0-86576-008-0
831:Nelson, Randy F.
790:978-1-4930-3267-9
758:978-0-8329-0123-2
708:on July 19, 2012.
604:978-0-7064-1713-5
488:as a result of a
355:George Washington
295:South Sea Islands
230:at the age of 8.
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31:Timothy Treadwell
16:(Redirected from
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1059:. Retrieved
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1015:. Retrieved
1011:the original
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968:. Retrieved
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942:. Retrieved
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890:. Retrieved
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359:William Pitt
343:golden eagle
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322:corset stays
300:He exported
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267:and Europe.
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228:farm laborer
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185:Nancy Dexter
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139:Notable work
124:Entrepreneur
95:(1806-10-23)
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1195:1806 deaths
1190:1747 births
970:January 26,
944:January 26,
918:January 26,
892:January 26,
425:Newburyport
401:politicians
331:New England
306:East Indies
276:bed warmers
265:West Indies
1184:Categories
540:References
318:whalebones
308:and stray
238:apprentice
120:Occupation
67:1747-01-22
1138:Biography
1061:March 11,
1031:Fiske, J.
351:mausoleum
314:Caribbean
214:Biography
992:(1858).
498:Amesbury
339:minarets
280:molasses
235:tanner's
179:Children
1150:History
1124:Portals
1091:at the
1017:May 19,
983:Sources
389:Writing
304:to the
284:Siberia
246:notions
222:in the
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432:Legacy
405:clergy
403:, the
347:cupola
302:Bibles
220:Malden
153:Spouse
148:(1802)
103:, U.S.
75:Malden
516:Notes
383:caned
167:(
163:
1063:2024
1019:2011
972:2024
946:2024
920:2024
894:2024
837:ISBN
785:ISBN
753:ISBN
653:ISBN
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472:The
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