The Charles and Jane Dickson Site

Of all the property owners who sold land for Rock Creek Park, only two were African Americans: Jane Dickson and Charles Dickson. The two Dicksons (we are not sure how they were related) owned nearly identical lots, each consisting of a quarter acre of land, a small house, and a garden. These properties caught the eye of historians because they represent the type of provision some enslavers made for formerly enslaved people, and it was thought that they might represent old slave quarter sites. But the name Dickson does not appear among the enslaved people of the Peirce family, which owned the surrounding land. Though the chain of title for these properties is obscure, it seems that the Dicksons purchased these lots in the 1860s.

Cart Driver figurine before conservation.

NPS

The Charles Dickson Site was a few hundred yards away from Jane Dickson's home. Here archeologists found almost nothing in their first shovel tests, probably because the area had been graded with heavy machinery when the park was built. But they noticed a small depression at the edge of the grassy lawn, and a test placed in the center of that depression produced brick pieces and a handful of artifacts. The depression, like that at the Sarah Whitby Site, turned out to be the surface sign of an old cellar hole. That shovel test was expanded into a 3x3-foot excavation and more artifacts were found, including bottle glass, pieces of ceramic dishes, a glass bead, and a railroad spike.

Cart Driver figurine after conservation.

NPS

One of the artifacts that came out of the cellar hole at the Charles Dickson Site was an iron figurine of a man, about 3.5 inches tall. He wore a hat and held his hands in front of him. His very full lips suggested that he was intended to be African American.

A colorful, antique mule cart toy.

NPS

One of the archeologists recognized that he resembled the "Negro cart drivers" that were common figures in old metal toys (and in real life, as carting was one of the main occupations of Black men in Washington). A bit of research led to an image of an antique mule cart toy for sale with a driver that looked very much like the one from the Charles Dickson Site. This little object provides a delightful glimpse into the Dicksons' home, where playing children may have let the cart drive their imagination.