Dickert, Jacob

Name Street Town State From To
Dickert, Jacob   Lancaster Pennsylvania 1755 1820


Patent Date Remarks
     


Contract for
Order of General Hand, Lancaster, February 7, 1794 about 314 Continental Rifles


Product
Missspellings Deckhert or Deckherd are known.

Born in 1740 in Mainz-Gonzenheim (Germany). His parents moved to America in 1748. One year later he started an apprenticeship as gunsmith. In 1756 he moved to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. In 1764 he was married to Johanetta Hofer of York, Pennsylvania. They had his firs child, Johannes in the same year. Their daughter Maria was born in 1765. She married James Gill of Lancaster in 1787. Dickert and John Henry baught a boring mill in 1774 During the Independence War he worked for the US-Army.

In the 1780 Slave Register for Lancaster County he is noted with one slave (name was Will, born about 1762, his status was slave during life).

In 1790 he opened a manufactory which specialty was the rifling of gun barrels.

In 1792 he would have contracted for rifles to the United States Army.

He was mainly involved in the development of the American long-rifle, which is based on the German Jägerbüchse.

The lock of his rifles was own-made but he uses also German or British manufacture locks.

A Dickert-style rifle was found in ALAMO. It is believed that it belonged to Davy Crocket.

Kentucky Rifles, he belongs to the Lancaster School. After 1800 together with Henry Dehuff, Peter Gonter, George Miller, Christopher Gumpf and John Bender he was producing arms for the United States Government at 11$ piece. They made all Charleville muskets like the pattern received by Springfield Armory.

Dickert died in 1822.

.60 caliber plintlock, 41 3/3" octagonal barrel, marked J. Dickert and US, one of those made for the U.S. Government

.60 flintlock, lock
.60 flintlock, lock counterplate
.60 flintlock, butt left
.60 flintlock, butt right
.60 flintlock, barrel marks
.60 flintlock, firepan