From the Archives – A Family with Connections to Our Parish

Dr. Elisha Cullen Dick, the youngest of the three physicians who treated George Washington on his deathbed, was a young Quaker from Philadelphia. He was also the only doctor who opposed bleeding the former president. Instead, he recommended performing a tracheotomy to assist his breathing, but the older physicians would not listen. Doctor Dick at times represented Fairfax County in the Virginia House of Delegates and served as mayor of Alexandria.

Although Doctor Dick never became a Catholic, his wife, Hannah Harmon Dick, an Episcopalian, converted and was baptized in Saint Mary Church. The Dicks lived at 408 Duke Street. Mrs. Dick lived for many years as a widow and died, in 1843, at the home of her daughter in rural, mountainous Botetourt County, Virginia. There were no priests or Catholic churches in that area until decades later, so she was buried in an Episcopalian cemetery.

The Dicks’ only son, Archibald Dick, married Sarah Hammersley, a Saint Mary parishioner and the daughter of Francis and Elizabeth Brent Hammersley, original members of the parish, who were neighbors and close friends of George and Martha Washington. Sadly, Archibald died shortly after their wedding. Sarah remained a widow and devoted the rest of her life to doing charitable work in the parish and community. She died in 1848; the site of her burial is unknown.

— Kitty Guy, Parish Historian

In 2020, to commemorate the 225th anniversary of our parish, we started “From the Archives” as a weekly feature online and in our bulletin to spotlight the history of Saint Mary’s. Due to its popularity, we are continuing the series. An archive of the features is located here.