The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-11-08

upon the general plan of his embyro city.
 As this sketch Is net intended to be one of the city of Montgomery, but one of the person who founded 1t, many facts con nected with the early history of the city will be omitted.
 The whole town was known for several years as New Philadelphia, a name which the relatives of MT. Dexter say he gave it. It was soon changed to Montgomery. Tn laying off the town, MT. Dexter pur- posely gave such a direction to the main street as to cause it's alignment to coin eide with the summit of beautiful ele- vation. reserving upon the summit a square, which he confidently predicted would at some time be the site of the State House. giving to the elevation the name of Capitol Hill. MT. Dexter also donated five acres for cemetery. This now constitutes the south half of the "oid graveyard" or Scott free burying ground" To this donation Gen. John Scott in 1928 added five more acres.
 Soon after the first settlement of Mont gomery, MT. Dexter embarked in what proved a very disastrous enterprise, the building of a set of mills on the Catoma Creek, about eight miles from Montgom- cry Shortly after the successful com pletion had been affected which in that day had been attended with heavy out lay. the whole affair was entirely swept away by a freshet.
 This, together with some subsequent unfortunate building operations. etc, crippled MT. Dexter so much that ne was compelled to part eventually at very low price. with nearly all the val uable lands near Montgomery. embracing several thousand acres. which he had se- cured by his Georgia script In 1880 MT. Dexter left Montgomery and was absent three years. portion of this was spent in Mobile, where he obtained the con- firmation of q great many valuable claims in and about the city for persons in whose behalf he acted, from the gen eral government. He made at the same time some very profitable investments in the purchase of forfeited land certificates For his exertions in this way, he obtain ed a considerable body of waste lands in the environs of Mobile. which, al- though intrinsically of no great value, was estimated and taxed in 1886 at about $10c .0O0.
 The larger portion of these three years was spent in the Mexican State of Goa hula and Texas. Here he purchased land script and located it, but the amount due to the government for the land, was paid by his heirs after his death to the Republic of Texas.
 From his return to Alabama from Tex as in 1883 to the time of his death, four years, he resided principally in Mobile, his attention occupied in land matters particularly the establishing of old claims under the Spanish and French jurisdic- tions. many of which from the igno- rance and neglect of the parties, had been overlooked by our government. By his success in this business he estab- lished in a short time a high reputation and his counsel and cooperation were se cured in many of the most important cases. He was thus gradually returning to that sphere which was his true posi- tion, and from which he had been led in early life by the Vaccinations of specu- lative enterprise. Here he had field for the exercise of that research and patient power of investigation for which he was eminently characterized.
 At the same time that he was thus oc- cupied, he was engaged for the last two years of his life in the construction of a rulnously expensive saw mill near Mo bile, to procure funds for which he sold or placed under mortgage all his estate in and near that city. His sudden death at the close of a year of general disaster, left his affairs like those of so many at the time. in state of hopeless em- barrassment. As stated above, he died Nov. 2. 1887. at the age of 58 years, 6 months and 5 days.
 He fell a victim to his benevolent and charitable impulses. Living in health full position eight miles from Mobile, the prevalence of the yellow fever could not deter him from visiting the city every day, and when there. of administering as had always been his practice, to the sick. An acquaintance whose life had been despaired of. he determined to save if possible. He remained with him night and day, and shortly after his recovery had been effected he was himself vio- lently attacked by the fatal disease. He had such confidence in the strength of his constitution, which was indeed remark able, that when attacked by the epidemic, he merely repaired to his office, where he usually slept when in the city. Here. attended by faithful servant. he took medicine and communicated his condi- ton to no one. no member of his family being then in that part of the country,