He was a distinguished lawyer, a leader of the Federalist Party, a member of Congress from 1806 to 1807, and secretary of the Hartford Convention in 1814 and 1815.

He was the brother of Timothy Dwight, the grandson of Jonathan Edwards, and a cousin of Aaron Burr.

He studied law under his uncle Pierpont Edwards, attained was admitted to the bar in 1787 and began practice in Haddam, Connecticut.

[1] He was a member of the State council from 1809 to 1815; elected as a Federalist to the Ninth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of John Cotton Smith, he served from December 1, 1806, to March 3, 1807.

He was secretary of the Hartford Convention in 1814–1815, moved to Albany, New York in 1815, and published the Daily Advertiser from 1815 to 1816.