VOLUME XVI, NUMBER 1
| 2019 REUNION Hello Cousins, The 2019 Dickinson Family Reunion will be Saturday, June 22 with a Friday night gathering of cousins on June 21. General Location: Essex, CT (37 miles SE of Hartford, CT) CT Route 9, Exit 3. Saturday Reunion Location: Essex Steam Train & Riverboat, (former grounds of the E.E. Dickinson Witch Hazel Company headquarters, distillery, and bottling plant). The reunion itself will be held within the former bottling plant which was recently renovated as a function hall. Address: 1 Railroad Avenue, Essex, CT 06246. The railroad, trains, and red colored factory buildings are located 1/8 mile to the West side of Route 9, Exit 3. There are two driveways: access from either Middlesex St. (CT 154) or Plains Rd (CT 153). Friday’s dinner will be held at “Brush Mill by the Waterfall”, 129 W. Main Street (CT Route 148), Chester, CT 06412. Chester is a short drive 5 mile drive North along CT Route 9 to Exit 6. This unique historic tavern and restaurant is located immediately to the SE side of Exit 6 along Pattaconk Brook. It’s a beautifully renovated 19th century wooden factory building constructed of antique chestnut directly overlooking a romantic waterfall complete with its own covered bridge. Essex is a quaint historic town with a beautiful harbor and marina. On Friday afternoon, we are planning a walking tour of downtown Essex Village and a visit to the CT River Museum. It will be guided with the assistance of Melissa Josefiak, Director of the Essex Historical Society. It will depart from 31 North Main St. (Wells Fargo Advisors / formerly the Dickinson Office Building) one mile East from Route 9 Exit 3 adjacent to Riverview Cemetery. Please park either in the parking lot or use on-street parking along Prospect Street. Start time and other details will be provided in the April Newsletter. Within a short distance from Dickinson Lane and along North Main and Prospect Streets are several buildings associated with the witch hazel business and other Dickinson families, the former Methodist church where Thomas Newton Dickinson was a minister, the Hills Academy History Center (Essex Historical Society) at 22 Prospect Street where he attended school, and Dickinson Park. Across the street from Dickinson Park is the former residence of E.E. Dickinson at21 North Main St.; the adjacent Dickinson carriage house; the 1750’s Samuel Lay homestead located at 17 North Main St. (former home of the top sales executive for Dickinson Witch Hazel) and old cow barn now renovated as a private home. See following website for a detailed map: www.essexhistory.org/walking-tour-of-essex/ In addition to the walking tour, we have obtained a group discount rate for the Essex Steam Train and Riverboat which can be used within a month. There’s much to do and see around Essex and its surrounding communities, so you may want to consider planning a short vacation for a full experience of what the area has to offer. We look forward to your attendance. Four generations of Dickinson men: Thomas N., Edward Everett, Edward Everett Jr. and Edward Everett 3d – managed and operated their company employing entire families in their factory. The product was sold internationally and witch hazel continues to be a key ingredient in many health and beauty products today. For more information on E.E. Dickinson Witch Hazel Company see following website link: https://www.ctexplored.org/witch-hazel-connecticuts-wonder-shrub/ E.E. and T.N. Dickinson Genealogy: Thomas Newton Dickinson (1825- 1900), Edward Everett (1859-1930), Edward Everett, Jr. (1921-1979) and Edward Everett 3d (1921-1979) had strong genealogical connections to both Hadley, MA and Wethersfield, CT. Sergt. John (1624-1676) was Nathaniel’s first son, born in Billingborough, England, raised in Wethersfield, CT, lived in Hadley, MA and perished in the Battle of Turner’s Falls. John (1652-1694/5), a Cooper by trade, was born in Wethersfield, raised in Hadley and Hatfield, and eventually returned to Wethersfield. Johnathan, Sr. (1695- 1776) lived in Wethersfield. Johnathan, Jr. (1726-1791) also lived in Wethersfield, but removed to Hadley after his wife, Hannah Boardman Dickinson, perished in 1777. Rev. Simeon (1756-1837) served in the CT Continental Troops (during Rev. War) and later was ordained as a minister and organized East Haddam’s First Baptist Church where both T.N. and his father Lemuel (1763-1836) were born.Lemuel was a shoe manufacturer and T.N. was a successful clothing manufacturer prior to distilling witch hazel in Essex. Ken Dickinson, President |
| WE NEED YOUR HELP! The DFA needs a few more of our members to assist the board and the position of Vice President is open. In addition, we would welcome some new committee members to assist with scholarship and finance. Committee members are not required to attend board meetings, so place of residence is not a limiting factor. Elected board members are expected to attend meetings when possible (3 per year), so it is helpful if they live in the general southern New England area.Please give this some serious consideration and let us know on the enclosed form about any areas in which you can help. If you have any questions, contact nominations chair Dale Williams daw451@verizon.net , President Ken Dickinson kmd12@comcast.net , or past president Alan Dickinson anbdickinson@charter.net.Our invitation to attend a board meeting still stands. If you would like to be notified of the time and place of the upcoming board meeting, please indicate that on the survey card. We’d love to have you come and see what we do! |
| 2019 SCHOLARSHIP FORMS AVAILABLE Application forms are now available for the 2019 DFA scholarship. Applicants must be descendants of Nathaniel Dickinson and must be accepted to a four-year college or university. The deadline for submission is April 30, 2019. Full information on requirements and an application form may be found on our website. For additional information you may contact our scholarship chair, Lisa Butler, 12 Cove St, Noank, CT 06340, dickinsonfamilyassociation@gmail.com. If you don’t have access to the internet, contact Lisa and she will send you the form. As always, we rely on contributions from DFA members to sustain and increase the scholarship fund. If you are able, we would appreciate your help. Indicate “scholarship fund” on the January Survey form if you wish to make a donation. |
| JANUARY SURVEY CARD The card enclosed with this mailing serves several purposes. Primarily it is to give us a rough idea of how many to expect at the reunion in June. We know that plans may change between January and June, but if you are hoping at this point to attend, please send the card back to inform us. The survey also gives you a chance to volunteer to help the DFA in a meaningful way. For those of you who live within a reasonable distance of the area where we usually meet, we would like to invite you to come to a board meeting. We usually meet in October, January and April, starting with lunch and in January and April concluding with the assembly of a mailing. If you come, you can get a “behind-the-scenes” look at how the DFA operates, have an opportunity to participate in our discussions, and maybe even find a niche for yourself on the board. Please consider that possibility, and let us know if you’re interested. Whether or not you can volunteer to work on the DFA board, all can help financially. As you know, we do not have dues, but we depend on members who are able, to make a contribution for operating expenses and/or for the scholarship fund. Any amount you can contribute is gratefully welcomed and will help the association. |
| ADDRESSES – POSTAL & E-MAIL We know e-mail addresses change frequently and it is easy to forget to update them. So if your e-mail address and/oryour postal address changes we would greatly appreciate your sending the new one to our membership clerk, Beth Landolina, at bethland719@yahoo.com |