| Name | Street | Town | State | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dickert, Jacob | Queen Street | Lancaster | Pennsylvania | 1755 | 1820 |
| Patent | Date | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Contract | for |
|---|---|
| Order of General Hand, Lancaster, February 7, 1794 | about 314 Continental Rifles |
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Missspellings Deckhert or Deckherd are known. He is believed that he made the first high-quality long rifles. He
belongs to the Lancaster School. Born January 9, 1740 in Mainz-Gonzenheim (Germany). He died February 27, 1822 in Lancaster. His parents, John and Mary (Johannes and Maria ?) moved to America in 1747 and istalled in Berks county. One year later he started an apprenticeship as gunsmith. In 1756 he moved to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. In 1764 he was married to Johanetta Höfer of York, Pennsylvania. They had their first child, a boy named John after his grandfather, who died some months later and a daughter, Anna Maria, born in 1766, died 1806. 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. 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. On January 2, 1792, Secretary of War Henry Knox asked General Edward Hand, who was living in Lancaster, Pennsylvania to contact for the first 1,000 rifles at 12$ each. The rifle should be .50 caliber with 42" rifled barrel, the lock to have a fly, with a patch box to be spring opened with abutton release. Additional 2,000 rifles were ordered and delivered in 1794. Finally the Government received 3,476 rifles made by different gunsmiths. The correspondence between Knox and Hand is published under - Gonter, Peter. In 1794 Jacob Dickert contribued 314 rifles at following delivery dates:
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 all made Charleville muskets like the pattern received by Springfield Armory. Letter of Purveyors Office to Dickert and De Huff " Purveyors Office Phila: Nov. 16th, 1807 Messrs. Jacob Dickert Henry De Huff Gentlemen: The rifles I am instructed to purchase are to follow the following description. They are to be common, plain rifles substantially made. The barrels to be three feet-two inches in length. The caliber such as to fit balls of half an ounce in weight. The barrels would be preferred round (instead of eight squared) from the tail pipe or lower thimble to the muzzle, The price to be paid for the rifle complete will be ten dollars cash. I am Sirs: Tench Coxe " Dlivered were 1779 rifles by: J. Henry, Lancaster on November 19, 1807, 898 rifles Henry De Huff & Co., Lancaster on December 7, 1807, 557 rifles Abraham Henry & Co., Lancaster, December 29, 1807, 169 rifles Henry Pickle, York, December 19, 1807, 155 rifles Dickert trained his grandsons, Jacob Dickert Gill (1788-1850) and Benjamin Gill (1790-1860), who also became rifle-makers. Dickert's rifles are about five feet long and about nine pounds in weight, thick stocked an inlcuded a flat buttplate. .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 |
