JOHN DICKINSON
By: Leah Witham, Chad Houchin, and Kailyn Lee
Family History
- John Dickinsons family immigrated to the colonies with his great grandfather Walter Dickinson who moved to the colonies from England to Virginia in 1654 and moved to Talbot County, where John Dickinson was later born, in 1659.
- John Dickinson is the son of Samuel Dickinson and his second wife, Mary Cadwalader.
- John was born in 1732 on a plantation named Croisadore which was founded by his great grandfather Walter Dickinson and had been in his family ever since.
- The land under his families control had steadily grown over the last few generations and now streatched 2,500 acres of land on 5 different farms and in 3 different counties of Maryland.
- The Dickinson family had been in the Third Haven Friends Meeting for three generations when John was born.
Political Affiliations
- Represented both Pennsylvania and Delaware at the founding of the republic.
- He believed that the government was a social contract between the people and their sovereign.
- Chosen to represent Pennsylvania at the Stamp Act Congress in October 1765.
- He was elected the president of Delaware in 1781 but then resigned his position and became the president of the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania.