Dr. Joseph William Dix

Dr. Joseph Dix, was a lay Methodist minister, son of a wealthy family, who was frequently away from home. He fell out with his father for marrying Mary Bigelow, and seems to have been cut off financially by the family. The elder Dr. Dix felt Mary wasn't of his son's class, that his son wouldn't be able to finish his matriculation at Harvard. Despite this, shortly after their marriage, his father sent him to be a land agent for one of his holdings.They were provided with a one room shack for a home in Hampden, Maine. Life there was fraught with hardships, least of which was the winter. After sometime he quit his land agent job, and began his ministry.

 Mary suffered from debilitating bouts of untreated depression, and in 1815 could no longer care for her children. Like most people of this time, mental illness was thought to be a religious punishment, and this must have put a very excessive strain on the family.  The oldest of their three children, Dorothea, had to run the  household and cared for her family members from a very young age. Joseph Dix, though a strict and volatile man, prone to alcoholism and depression, taught his daughter to read and write, fostering Dorothea’s lifelong love of books and learning. Still, Dorothea’s early years were difficult, unpredictable and lonely.

He is cited as a doctor in the banns read for his wedding to Mary Bigelow. He is also mentioned as a book dealer while in Maine. He accepted his father's pew at the Congregational meeting house in Hampden, before leaving Maine. Many exaggerated and speculative stories about the Dix family have been written, from grandfather Elijah being murdered (not true), to wife Mary being 18 years older than Joseph (she was one year younger). Daughter Dorothea had her own set of issues from living an absent, alchoholic father and a depressed mother. There doesn't seem to be sources regarding Mary Bigelow, if she was sick with tuberculosis (Dorothea is sometimes speculated to have suffered from this). Dorothea herself believed later in life that depression was hereditary, as she too suffered from it severely.

Sources:

http://people.uwplatt.edu/~enrightc/Hys&Sys/2016%20Presentation/Yel...

Gilman Bigelow Howe, . Genealogy of the Bigelow Family of America from the 1642 Marriage of John Biglo and Mary Warren to the Year 1890. Charles Hamilton Printers, Worcester, MA. 517pp.

Dorothea Dix: New England Reformer By Thomas J. Brown

15133.8 Mary 6 BIGELOW, daughter of Charles 5 ( Joseph 4, John 3, Samuel 2, John 1) and Lucy ( BENNETT ) BIGELOW was born 15 July 1779 at Shrewsbury, Worcester county, MA. She was married, on 27 Dec 1800 at Wayland, MA, to Dr. Joseph Dix, son of Elijah and Dorothea (Lynde) Dix. He was a native of Worcester. They lived a few years in Hampden, ME, then returned to Worcester, where he died in 1821. Mary died 3 Sep 1834 (date also given as 28 Sep). For a brief look into their lives, the reader should try any biography of their daughter Dorothea L. Dix, such as Stranger and Traveler, by Dorothy Clarke Wilson.