Robert Donald Dickson (1908 - 1991)

Born 20 Dec 1908 in Monaca, Pennsylvania, United States

Ancestors

Died 13 Apr 1991 at age 82 in Milford, Oakland, Michigan, United States

Biography

Donald was born in 1909. He is the son of Robert Dickson and Leora Cantlon.

written by Rob Purdie: "Don" was the name my grandfather went by most commonly, though he was also identified by long-time family and friends as "R.D." This seemed strange to me because I knew Don's dad's initials were also R.D. (of course, the more staid and formal Robert Darragh Dickson probably seldom would choose to self-identify through initials).

Don was a devoutly Christian man who attended Taylor Theological Seminary in Upland, Indiana ^[1] in the late 1920s with the goal of entering the clergy. He was, however, a less-than-remarkable student and only attended Taylor for a year or two before returning to Pennsylvania and ultimately graduating from Carnegie Tech (later Carnegie-Mellon University).

Don was born in November 1908 in Monaca. His wife Myrna Miller was born a year later in Aliquippa. Their birthdays were only a couple of days apart; I believe November 20 and 22, respectively. They also died within a year of one another after over 50 years of marriage. Don died in 1991 and Myrna in 1992, both in Milford, Michigan.

Don's academic achievement was enabled largely by Myrna, who would later become a career schoolteacher. While Don had a bit of natural gifting for mathematics, he struggled with penmanship and grammar. He was working for Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation when the couple married in the 1930s. He was ultimately able to gain a finance management position with the company that he remained with until his retirement the early 1970s.

Myrna spent her elementary teaching career with in Aliquippa and Hopewell District Schools. She actually had my twin brothers, David and Russell (born October 25, 1967 in Carthage, NY), in her third-grade class at Five Points Elementary for a year. Her commitment to my brothers and myself as an educator remains to this day a defining influence in our lives (I guess that is something my brothers and I share with Don).

Don and Myrna lived in an apartment off Woodlawn Road across the street from the mill for a while until they built a house on McKinley Avenue in Hopewell (3007 McKinley Ave.). They would live there until the 1980s, raising two daughters, Karen Lee (Smith) and Cheryl Rae (Purdie-Mills-Youd). Cheryl is my mother.

Ultimately, Don and Myrna moved to Milford, Michigan and built a new home on Rae Lynn Ln. off Duck Lake Road next door Karen and her husband, William Robert Smith, and their two daughters, Heather Rae (Wisnieski) and Cheryl Lynn (Milton).

1910 United States Census, Pennsylvania

Robert Dickson Head M 31 Scotland

Leora Dickson Wife F 27 Ohio

Helen E Dickson Daughter F 7 Pennsylvania

Dorothy A Dickson Daughter F 4 Pennsylvania

Donald S Dickson Son M 1 Pennsylvania^[2]

1920 United States Census, Pennsylvania

Robert D Dickson Head M 41 Scotland

Lina Dickson Wife F 36 Ohio

Helen E Dickson Daughter F 16 Pennsylvania

Dorothy A Dickson Daughter F 13 Pennsylvania

R Donald Dickson Son M 11 Pennsylvania

L Jean Dickson Daughter F 7 Pennsylvania

Harry R Dickson Son M 5 Pennsylvania

Mary E Dickson Daughter F 1 Pennsylvania^[3]

1930 United States Census, Pennsylvania

Robert Dickson Head M 51 Scotland

Leora A Dickson Wife F 46 Ohio

Donald Dickson Son M 21 Pennsylvania

Jean Dickson Daughter F 17 Pennsylvania

Harry Dickson Son M 15 Pennsylvania

Mary E Dickson Daughter F 11 Pennsylvania^[4]

Sources

• Memories of Grandson, Rob Purdie

1. ↑ | Beaver County Time, June 8, 1928
2. ↑ United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MGQF-ZK6 : accessed 9 August 2015), Donald S Dickson in household of Robert Dickson, Monaca Ward 2, Beaver, Pennsylvania, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 36, sheet 2A, family 25, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 1,375,324.
3. ↑ [1920 US Census, United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MFRH-J5H : accessed 9 August 2015), R Donald Dickson in household of Robert D Dickson, Monaca Ward 2, Beaver, Pennsylvania, United States; citing sheet 2A, family 25, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 1,821,532.
4. ↑ United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XCZ6-8QV : accessed 9 August 2015), Donald Dickson in household of Robert Dickson, Monaca, Beaver, Pennsylvania, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 0072, sheet 9B, family 229, line 52, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 1997; FHL microfilm 2,341,731.

See also:

• United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QK7L-CDDH : accessed 9 August 2015), Mr Robert D Or Don Dickson, New York, United States, 23 Apr 1991; from "Recent Newspaper Obituaries (1977 - Today)," database, GenealogyBank.com (http://www.genealogybank.com : 2014); citing Watertown Daily Times, born-digital text.

• Robert D Dickson (1908 - 1991) - Find A Grave Memorial