Archives of Maryland
(Biographical Series)

Robert Dick (b. circa 1801 - d. circa 1880)
MSA SC 5496-035985
Slave and Property Holder, Medley and Rockville Districts, Montgomery County, Maryland

Biography:

Robert Dick was born around 1801 in Georgetown, D.C., to Thomas Dick and his wife Margaret Peter.1 From 1825 to 1850, Dick purchased at least 1,300 acres in Montgomery County, Maryland. His farm stood near the Seneca Mills along the Potomac River in District 3, including parts of the tracts "Thomas's Discovery Fortified" and "Resurvey on Part of Cider & Ginger." He also owned land in the Rockville District on part of a tract called "Huntington."2 Along with his Maryland properties, Dick maintained the family property in Georgetown where he owned a home later known as the Beall House.3

In July 1831, Davy fled slavery on Dick's farm in Seneca Mills,4 likely joining a group heading towards Pennsylvania. The 1840 census listed thirty-three slaves on Dick's property in Seneca Mills,5 and thirteen on his property in the Rockville District.6 Neither location listed any white residents, with Dick living at his home in Georgetown.7 Over twenty years later, Dick petitioned the U.S. District Court for reimbursement for five fugitive slaves who had fled to Washington D.C., which had illegalized slavery in 1862. Jane and her children, John, Tom, Margaret, and Tode, were born on Dick's Montgomery County farm, and had fled to D.C. on May 16, 1862.8

Census records reveal the numbers of African Americans enslaved on Dick's properties throughout the years. In 1850, Dick had twenty-three slaves working at Seneca Mills, the same property from which Davy had fled.8 By this time, Dick owned another farm a short ways west, with eighteen slaves.9 Nine more slaves worked on his property in the Rockville District.10

Census records also show that Dick continued living at his Georgetown home, listing him as head of the house in 1850. The household included his mother Margaret, as well as four slaves.11 However, Dick also lived with family or friends who lived on or near his Maryland property. For instance, the 1850 census showed Robert Dick staying in the Rockville District with the family of George Peter, from whom he had purchased much of his land. In 1860, he was staying at Washington Burriss' farm south of Rockville, between his Georgetown and his Maryland properties.12 Dick may have been spending more time at his Maryland property by then, since he did not appear among Georgetown residents in the 1860 census. The majorit of his slaves - twenty-four - appeared on his property in the census of the Medleys District, while eight were recorded in the Rockville District13 and four at the house in Georgetown.14

Beginning in 1856, Robert Dick served as the president of the Montgomery County Agricultural Society.15 Following the Society's show in 1857, the American Farmer reported that Dick had exhibited "a sample of corn of extraordinary growth from a field planted three feet each way, two stalks to a hill, and averaging three fair sized ears to the stalk."16 Dick raised mainly corn and wheat on his farms.17

He eventually accumulated large debts through his land purchases. In October 1869,  Dick sold 2191/2 acres to George Peter, using the money towards various debts.18 In May 1870, he sold another 330 acres to Peter19 and moved back to his property in Georgetown.20 One African American domestic servant, seventy-year-old Ellen Hamilton, worked in his house. The census for that year recorded Dick as still owning $67,000 in real estate.21 He had passed away by 1880, when he disappeared from census records.
 

1.     Roger Brooke Farquhar. Old Homes and History of Montgomery County, Maryland (Washington, D.C.: Judd & Detweiler, Inc., 1952) 334.

2.     Montgomery County District 3, Simon J. Martenet, Martenet and Bond's Map of Montgomery County, 1865, Library of Congress, MSA SC 1213-1-464.
        MONTGOMERY COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1825-1827, Liber Y, Folio 91, [MSA CE 148-26]. Charles Gassaway to Robert Dick, June 18, 1825.
        MONTGOMERY COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1825-1827, Liber Y, Folio 137, [MSA CE 148-26]. George Peter to Robert Dick, Setpember 3, 1825.
        MONTGOMERY COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1833-1834, Liber BS 6, Folio 554, [MSA CE 148-32]. Robert P. Dunlop, trustee, to Robert Dick, October 4, 1834.
        MONTGOMERY COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1836-1838, Liber BS 8, Folio 71, [MSA CE 148-34]. Brooke Mackall to Robert Dick, October 3, 1836.
        MONTGOMERY COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1838-1839, Liber BS 9, Folio 0538, [MSA CE 148-35]. Amos Young to Robert Dick, October 3, 1839.
        MONTGOMERY COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1842-1843, Liber BS 11, Folio 323, [MSA CE 148-37]. Mary Maccubbin, et al, to Robert Dick, November 14, 1842.

3.     Farquhar 333-335.

4.     "100 Dollars Reward." Daily National Intelligencer 29 July 1831: 2. Maryland State Archives.

5.     U.S. Census Bureau (MD) for Robert Dick, 1840, Montgomery County, Medleys District, Page 9, Line 22 [MSA SM61-113, M 4722]. Slaves listed on Page 10, Line 22.
         Montgomery County District 3, Simon J. Martenet, Martenet and Bond's Map of Montgomery County, 1865, Library of Congress, MSA SC 1213-1-464.

6.     U.S. Census Bureau (MD) for Robert Dick, 1840, Montgomery County, Rockville District, Page 22, 9th line from bottom [MSA SM61-113, M 4722]. Slaves listed on Page 23.
         Montgomery County District 4, Simon J. Martenet, Martenet and Bond's Map of Montgomery County, 1865, Library of Congress, MSA SC 1213-1-464.

7.     "Notice." American and Commercial Daily Advertiser 9 September 1843. Maryland State Archives.
         Farquhar 334.

8.     Emancipation Papers for Robert Dick (slaveholder). Records of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Relating to Slaves, 1851-1863; National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Ancestry.com.

8.     U.S. Census Bureau (MD) for Robert Dick, Slaves, 1850, Montgomery County, Medleys District, Page 2, Line 2 [MSA SM61-168, M 1505-5].

9.     U.S. Census Bureau (MD) for Robert Dick, Slaves, 1850, Montgomery County, Medleys District, Page 7, Line 8 [MSA SM61-168, M 1505-5].

10.   U.S. Census Record (MD) for Robert Dick, Slaves, 1850, Montgomery County, Rockville District, Page 10, Line 2 [MSA SM61-168, M 1505-5].

11.   1850 U.S. Federal Census Record (DC) for R. Dick, Washington, Georgetown, Page 70, Line 14. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009.
         1850 U.S. Federal Census Record (DC) for R. Dick, Washington, Georgetown, Page 2, Line 36. Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.

12.   U.S. Census Bureau (MD) for Robert Dick, 1850, Montgomery County, Rockville District, Page 16, Line 37 [MSA SM61-142, M 1499-1].
         U.S. Census Bureau (MD) for Robert Dick, 1860, Montgomery County, Rockville District, Page 31, Line 33 [MSA SM61-213, M 7223-1].
         MONTGOMERY COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1825-1827, Liber Y, Folio 137, [MSA CE 148-26]. George Peter to Robert Dick, Setpember 3, 1825.

13.   U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Robert Dick, Slaves, 1860, Montgomery County, Medleys District, Pages 18-19 [MSA SM61-239, M 7230-2].
         U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for R. Dick, Slaves, 1860, Montgomery County, Rockville District, Page 4, Line 33 [MSA SM61-239, M 7230-2].

14.   1860 U.S. Federal Census Record (DC) -- Slave Schedule for Robert Dick, Washington, Georgetown Ward 2, Line 27. Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.

15.   Maryland Historical Society. Maryland Historical Magazine. Vol. 81 (Baltimore, MD: Maryland Historical Society, 1986) 113.
        Maryland State Agricultural Society. American Farmer. Vol. 13 (Baltimore, MD: S. Sands & Wothington, 1857) 129.

16.   Maryland State Agricultural Society 150.

17.   Maryland State Agricultural Society 128.

18.   "Willard Log House (Charles F.M. Willard House, Izaak Walton League Property)." M: 17-45. Maryland Historical Trust. Inventory of Historical Properties. www.mdihp.net.
         MONTGOMERY COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT, (Land Records), 1868-1869, Liber EBP 6, Folio 477, [MSA CE 63-16]. Robert Dick to George Peter, October 6, 1869.

19.   MONTGOMERY COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT, (Land Records), 1869-1870, Liber EBP 7, Folio 293, [MSA CE 63-17]. Robert Dick to George Peter, May 6, 1870.

20.   U.S. Census Record (MD) for Robert Dick, 1870, District of Columbia, Washington, Georgetown, Page 146, Line 10 [MSA SM61-275, M 7256].

21.   Ibid.
   

Researched and written by Rachel Frazier, 2010.

Return to Robert Dick's Introductory Page


This web site is presented for reference purposes under the doctrine of fair use. When this material is used, in whole or in part, proper citation and credit must be attributed to the Maryland State Archives. PLEASE NOTE: The site may contain material from other sources which may be under copyright. Rights assessment, and full originating source citation, is the responsibility of the user.

Tell Us What You Think About the Maryland State Archives Website!
© Copyright December 30, 2013 Maryland State Archives