Thomas Dickerman (1597 - 1657)

Thomas Dickerman was born about 1597, perhaps in Southwark, Surrey, England, son of Thomas Dickerman, born in Buckingham, England about 1571. He married Ellen Whittington on October 10, 1631, in Little Missenden, Buckinghamshire, England. She was the daughter of John Whittington and Margaret Hill. Ellen was born on 1603 in England and died in Dorchester, MA. He first appears in the annuals of the Dorchester church in 1636.

Thomas is listed as a freeman in March 14, 1638/39. He is named in the 1637 division of land in Dorchester where he received on the neck: 3 acres, 1 quarter and 17 rods and on the cow pasture: 3 acres, 2 quarters and 17 rods. In April 1, 1640, he was formally given one and a half acre that had not been formally granted. In Dec. 7, 1641, the Dorchester settlers agreed to support a free public school through land conveyed to the town, the first town known to do so, and Thomas Dickerman was one of the 71 signers of this agreement. The town had tried to support the school through a direct tax in 1639 but this proved too difficult to collect.

On March 1, 1646 he witnessed the will of John Pratt of Dorchester and he took the inventory of the estate with Will Clarke on Nov. 3, 1647. In 1651 the town granted Thomas seven shillings for timber used in the meeting house. Thomas died on June 11, 1657 in Dorchester, MA and was buried in Malden, MA. An inventory of his goods and estate was taken by John Capen and Will Clarke and is recorded in Suffolk County and deposed to his widow in Nov. 25, 1657. The list of goods suggest that he was a tailor and a farmer. His estate was valued at 235 pds, 11 shillings, 4 pence with land in Dorchester and Boston Neck.

The Dorchester property was on the west side of the highway just before it crossed Roxbury brook, the boundary between Dorchester and Roxbury, ground lying (in 1897 – as recorded in Dickerman genealogy) on Dudley Street between North Avenue and Brook Avenue. After Thomas died, Ellen married John Bullard. In July 14, 1663, the Dorchester church recorded her dismissal to go to the church of Medfield, the town of her new husband. Thomas and Ellen had four sons. There is also a claim by some that they had a daughter Hannah but there is no evidence for this.

1. Thomas born about 1623 (or 1633?) in England and he died in 1685 in Malden, MA. He first married Elizabeth Smith (1625-1671) by 1653 in Malden. They had at least four and perhaps seven children, the last three listed are not confirmed: Sarah (1653*-1654), Lydia (1655*-1680), Thomas (1657*-1658), Hannah (1659*-1706), Mary (1660-1737/38), John (1666-1729), Elizabeth (1668-). After Elizabeth died in 1671, he remarried and had one daughter: Anna (1674*-).

2. Abraham born 1634 in England and died Nov. 2, 1711 in Branford, CT and is buried there. Abraham married Mary Cooper on Dec. 2, 1658 in New Haven. She was born on Aug. 5, 1640 in New Haven, the daughter of John Cooper and Mary Woolen (see Cooper family), and died Jan. 4, 1705/06. They had nine children: Mary (1659 – 1728), Sarah (1661), Sarah (1663-1735), Hannah (1665 – 1708), Ruth (1668 – 1725), Abigail (1670 – 1752), Abraham (1673 – 1748), Issac (1677 – 1758), Rebeccah (1679 – 1757). All were born in New Haven. His son, Issac, was a deacon in the New Haven church and was also a captain in the militia (Hartley, 1959). His daughter, Mary, married Samuel Bassett (see Bassett family) on June 21, 1677.

3. Issac Dickerman, born Dec. 1637* in Dorchester, MA (baptism recorded in church records), died 1726 in Boston.

4. John Dickerman, born Oct. 29, 1644 in Dorchester, MA (baptism recorded in church records), died young.

Comments

[Robert J. Leonard]

Hello,

One of my grandmothers was Mattie (Dickerman) Leonard, daughter of Ezra Dickerman of West Burke, Vt. Her people came to Vermont from New Haven, Connecticut, and were descended from Thomas Dickerman. My grandmother said that according to family history, Thomas (who had a tailor shop in Boston) was buried in Dorchester. Years ago, the Dorchester Historical Society told me this as well.

Your article says that he was buried in Malden, and the Grove Street Cemetary in New Haven has a stone which bears the names of three sons - Abraham, Isaac and Steven -AND the name of Thomas Dickerman, including dates of birth and death, giving the impression that he is buried there too! Interesting and confusing! :)

[bill Ives]

Robert thanks for your comment. Part of the confusion comes from the fact that there are many Thomas Dickermans. The Thomas who came from England did settle and eventually die in the Boston area according to the official records of Suffolk County and the Dicerkman genealogy book I reference. This Thomas was buried in Dorcester as you found also. It was his son Thomas who was buried in Malden. His other son Abraham did move to New Haven but had no sons or grandsons named Thomas which is surprising. The records about Abraham and his family came from the offcial town recrods of New Haven. I am not sure about the Thomas buried in New Haven but he was not the first Thomas or his son who are buried in Dorcester and Malden. The New Haven Thomas is likely a later decendent of Abraham. Hope this helps. Any records you find would certainly be appreciated. Bill

[Cat Howell-Thomas]

Hi there
Just a big thatnk you for all this detail on the Dickerman family. I have only just started looking at this line.

Do you have any detail on their arrival in America? the ship or location of their arrival, or a date?

Sarah Louise Dickerman is my paternal grandmother's, grandfather's, mother.

Sarah Louise Dickerman (1801 - 1890)
3rd great-grandmother
Charles Bradley Rustin (1836 - 1900)
son of Sarah Louise Dickerman
Henry C Rustin (1865 - 1906)
son of Charles Bradley Rustin
Margaret Elizabeth Rustin (1895 - 1968)
Arthur Brandon Howell (1918 - 1987)
Catherine Nicola Jane Howell
daughter of Arthur Brandon Howell

[Cat Howell-Thomas]

Apologies I have just come to your Thomas Dickerman - Early life, which includes info on their arrival to America.
Thanks for all your work!

Cat Howell-Thomas

[Bill Ives]

Thanks for your input.Please feel free to share anything you find.

[Thomas Dickerman Dunn]

My name is Thomas Dickerman Dunn. My maternal grandfather was Sharon Bassett Dickerman (1873-1934). My parents told me that I am named after the Thomas Dickerman whose biography you give above. I was also told that he (and presumably Ellen) embarked on their journey from England to America at the port of Bristol. Given the dates you give above, that would have probably been sometime between 1632 and 1635.

Somewhere I read - perhaps in the big "Dickerman Book" - that the Dickermans had not been in England very long, and may have come from Germany or Central Europe during the sixteenth century. "Dickerman" - meaning "fat (or large) man" - is reportedly not an Anglo-Saxon name.

[Bill Ives]

Thomas thanks for your interesting input.