Mary Dixon

Burial location is a best guess based upon the burial of Mary's sister-in-law Sarah Vincent Hinchman, at around the same time. Mary's brother John Hinchman may also be buried in this cemetery. Her birth and death years are estimated based on the time of her marriage, the births of her children, and the time of her husband William Dixon's second marriage to Nancy Vincent.

Mary or "Polly" is commonly thought to be one of the two orphan girls mentioned by William Hinchman during his 1780 trial for treason in Maryland. At that time, William also mentioned three of his own children. The three children would have actually been William Jr, John, and Mary. The names of the orphan girls are not known, but I suspect they were nieces of William's wife Elizabeth Kirwan. William and Elizabeth's fourth child, also Elizabeth, was not born until 1785, after the family moved to Virginia.

William Hinchman's 1813 will clears up any confusion. It names his two sons William Jr and John, as well as his daughter Elizabeth Ellice (alternately Ellis). William's daughter Elizabeth Hinchman had married Phillip Ellis in 1804. The will also names a son-in-law named William Dixon and a granddaughter named Elizabeth Dixon, as well as other Hinchman grandchildren. Mary or "Polly" Hinchman had married William Dixon in 1794. She died prior to 1807, when William Dixon married Nancy Vincent. Mary was therefore deceased at the time of her father's will. She left at least five children, one of whom was the Elizabeth Dixon mentioned in her father's will. Mary was undoubtably one of William and Elizabeth Hinchman's biological children.* Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Oct 12 2023, 21:45:58 UTC