An American Family History

Will of John Dickerson
Late of Moon Township, Allegheny County, deceased
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Will Book Volume 4, No. 22, pp. 35 - 37
Filed November 14th, 1832

The last will and testament of John Dickerson, of Moon township,
Allegheny County.

I John Dickerson considering the uncertainty of this mortal life, and being of sound mind and memory (blessed be God for his mercies) do make and publish this my last will and testament, in manner and form following (that is to say)

First I will that all my Just Debts and being by me owing at the time of my Death together with my funaral expences Shall be first paid out of my personal estate ? and as to the land on which I now live, my will is that it Shall remain in the hands of my beloved wife Mary Dickerson for her support During her natural life and

at the Death of the said Mary Dickerson I give and bequeath to my youngest Daughter Drusilla Trunick fifty acres including the Mansion house and so forth begining at a post on McKindley’s line thence S. 22½ East untill it Joins land lately Sold to Beney Trunick thence by a south west line to Neely’s line, thence by said line to McKindley's line at a Stone thence to the place of beginning,

? as to the balance of my land I wish it to be Sold at the Death of my wife if she should out live me, by my executors hereafter named and the money Divided as follows.

I give and bequeath to my Daughter Ruth or her Heirs the sum of fifty Dollars,

I give to my Daughter Temperance Fox the Sum of two Dollars,

I give and bequeath to my Daughter Drusilla the sum of one hundred Dollars,

I Give and bequeath to my Daughter Elisabeth the sum of one
hundred Dollars,

I give to my Daughter Mary Pearce the sum of one hundred Dollars,

and to my Grand Daughter Nancy Mitchell I give and
bequeath one feather bed and beding and five Dollars in cash,

and to the other Grand Children of brother and sisters of the said Nancy, I give and bequeath the sum of forty Dollars, it being the price of a horse Sold to David Mitchell their father now owing to me to be paid to them Share and Share alike,

and to my Grand Daughter Mary Ann Dickerson I Give and bequeath the sum of fifty Dollars,

I Give and bequeath to my Son Zadock Dickerson the Sum of one Hundred Dollars.

I give and bequeath to my Daughter Susana Mehin the Sum of two Dollars,

I give and bequeth to my Son Isaac P. Dickerson between twenty one and twenty two acres of my land begining at oher other land of Isaac P. Dickerson and thence by land lately sold to Beney Trunick S. 56½ west to Neely’s line thence by Neely’s line to Isaac P. Dickerson’s line thence by the same to the place of begining, and

the overplus if any after the several sums is paid heretofore provided for, is my will (that it) Shall be divided Share and Share alike betwixt my Daughters Mary, Drusilla, Elisabeth, and my sons Zadock and Isaac Pearce,

and Lastly I hereby appoint My Daughter Drusilla Trunick and George Morrison Sole executors of this my last will and testament and further it is my will that all my personal property after My Death Shall remain with my Wife during her natural and after her life and at her Death to be Sold and the money Divided Share and Share alike among the persons heretofore named to Get
the Surplus money of the land if any, hereby Revoking all former wills by me made in witness whereof I have hereunto Set my hand and Seal the tenth day of April in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty two.

John Dickerson (Seal)


Signed, Sealed, published and Declared, by the above named John
Dickerson to be his last will and testament, in the presence of us; who, at his request and have in his presence have Subscribed our names as witnesses thereunto.
Geo. Morrison
James Trunick
Wm. McKindlay

Allegheny County ss. On the 14th day of November A.D. 1832
personally appeared before me John M. Snowden, Register for the probate of wills in and for said county, George Morrison, James Trunick & William McKindlay the three subscribing witnesses to the foregoing will who being solemnly sworn according to law deposeth and saith that they were present and saw and heard John Dickerson the testator sign, seal, publish, pronounce and declare the foregoing instrument of writing to be as and for his last will and testament and that at the time of his so doing he was of perfect and sound mind, memory and understanding according to the best of their knowledge, observation and belief. Given
under my hand the day and date aforesaid
John M. Snowden
Reg’r

Dickerson Families of Washington County, Pennsylvania

from Historical Collections of Harrison County by Charles Augustus Hanna

John Dickerson and Henry Dickerson settled in Amwell (now Franklin) township, Washington county, before 1780,

John Dickerson apparently having come from Dunbar (now Tyrone) township, Fayette county, where his name appears on the tax-list in 1772, and where Joshua Dickerson (1740-1827) had settled about 1770; Joshua and John were doubtless brothers, and Henry may have been a third brother, although more probably the son of John.

John Dickerson d. in Washington county in 1785 (before March), leaving a widow, Ruth (d. before December, 1807), and children, of whom the following were mentioned in his will, written more than seven years before his death:
1. Susannah;
2. Henry (may have been the Henry mentioned below);
3. Gideon, d. unm. September November, 1789;
4. Baruch;
5. Asa, d. January. 1794; m. Lydia (had issue: i. John; ii. William, d. 1860; m. (1st) Sarah Jolly; m. (2d) Martha Clark);
6. Drusilla

Henry Dickerson, of Morris township. d. before Aug. 13. 1825; m. Ann; had issue:
1. Joshua, b. in Washington county, May 3, 1781; d. April 30, 1853, m. (1st) Margaret McPherson; m. (2d) Cornelia Craig (had issue:
i. Joshua D.;
ii. Nancy;
iii. Alexander;
iv. John, b. April 13, 1810; d. April 10, 1865; m. [1st] Mary Adams, daughter of Robert; m. [2d] Mary Johnson;
v. Jane, m. Samuel Walters; vi. Ruth, m. Lewis Barker;
vii. Henry;
viii. Lydia, m. Howard Trusell;
ix. Margaret, m. William Hazlett;
x. Matilda);
2. George;
3. Gideon Dickerson, m. Eliza Gunn, and removed to Ohio;
4. Henry, m. Catharine Beck, and removed to Illinois;
5. Leonard, m. Susan Wolf, and removed to Ohio;
6. Asa;
7. Margaret, m. :— McLaughlin;
8. Ruth, m. Reynolds.

Joshua Dickerson, b. 1740; d. in Fayette county, Penn., Oct. 10, 1827; came from New Jersey; settled on what is now called Dickerson's Run, in Dunbar township, near East Liberty, Fayette county, Penn., about 1770: here, in 1780, he built a grist-mill on the site of the mill now owned by the Oglevee brothers; from this settlement and its vicinity emigrated to Harrison county the families of Dunlap, Oglevee, Barricklow, Rankin, and others;

Joshua Dickerson had six sons. Thomas, William, John, Joshua, Levi, and Eli, all of whom removed to Ohio near the beginning of the present century. Joshua Dickerson also had, among other daughters, one, Sarah, who m. Samuel Dunlap; of the sons
Eli, b. 1768; d. in Harrison county, Nov. 24, 1834; m. Mary , b. 1776; d. April 28, 1831.
Thomas Dickerson, b. May 19, 1764; d. Dec. 24, 1852:
Joshua, b. in Fayette county, Penn.; d. April 12, 1850