Dyer, Eliphalet, 1721-1807

Eliphalet Dyer (September 14, 1721 – May 13, 1807) was a lawyer, jurist, and statesman from Windham, Connecticut. He was a delegate for Connecticut to many sessions of the Continental Congress, signed the Continental Association, and is one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.

Born in Windham in the Colony of Connecticut, he pursued preparatory studies before graduating from Yale College, reading law, and being admitted to the bar. After serving as a town clerk, Dyer became a member of the militia, then in 1747 was elected justice of the peace and a member of the colonial assembly. In the French and Indian War, Dyer was a Lt. Colonel in the militia. In 1763, he visited London as an agent for the Susquehanna Land Company in a failed attempt to gain title for a colonial venture to the Wyoming region. Connecticut sent Dyer to New York City for the Stamp Act Congress. This Congress of protest was an important precursor to the American Revolution. In 1766, he was elected a justice of Connecticut’s superior court. He held that post until 1793, serving as chief justice after 1789.

As the Revolution began, Dyer was named to the state’s Committee of Safety and named a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1774. He served in the Congress from 1774 to 1775, 1777 to 1779, and 1782 to 1783. Dyer retired from public life in 1793. He died at home in Windham on May 13, 1807, and is buried in the Windham Cemetery.