112 



HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY. 



pressed with, the power of Enghind and 

 the futility of armed resistance, while 

 he condemned the injustices ijf the 

 mother country toward the colonics, and 

 being conscientious in regard to the 

 oath he had taken as a justice, read the 

 proclamation from the court house steps 

 at Newtown, and counselled his friends 

 and neighbors to pause before it was too 

 late, and to postpone any over action or 

 resistance until the colonies grew 

 stronger. Excitement ran high at the 

 time, and he was branded as a traitor 

 and forced to flee the country and spend 

 the remainder of his days in Nova 

 Scotia, where he was supported by a 

 pension from the British government, 

 and where he 'was waylaid and mur- 

 dered by highwaymen on March 8, 1786, 

 for the quarterly pension he had just 

 drawn. From the nature of the advice 

 he gave to his eldest son Isaac, who 

 visited him while in New York imme- 

 diately after his flight, there is every 

 reason to believe that if reasoned with 

 calmly he would have realized that mat- 

 ters had progressed too far for peaceful 

 measures to prevail, and would have 

 lived to render to the patriot cause the 

 same eminent service that he gave to 

 his county under royal authority. His 

 extensive property was confiscated, and 

 his family reduced to almost penury. 

 His son Isaac, wdio at the time was clerk 

 of the several courts of Bucks county, 

 was cast under suspicion and removed 

 from office. Mary Rodman Hicks, the 

 wife of Gilbert, died August 17, 1769, 

 years before his flight and disgrace. They 

 were the parents of five children: i. 

 Isaac, born April 21, 1748, married his 

 first cousin. Catharine Hicks, daughter 

 of Colonel Edward Hicks and Violetta 

 Ricketts, of New Jersey. 2. Sarah, born 

 November 3, 1749, died unmarried. 3. 

 Elizabeth, born April 7, 1751, married 

 June 4, 1768, General Augustine Willet, 

 of Bensalem township. 4. Mary, born 

 January 15, 1753. married May 8, 1772, 

 Samuel Kirkbride. 5. Joseph Rodman, 

 born November 12, 1756, married July 

 29, 1777, his cousin, Margaret Thomas'. 

 Joseph Rodman Hicks purchased in 

 1780 a farm of one hundred acres near 

 Dolington, in Upper Makefield town- 

 ship, and spent the remainder of his life 

 there. He died May 28, 1816. His wife 

 was an approved minister among 

 Friends at Makefield Meeting, adjoin- 

 ing the farm, the land upon which the 

 meeting house was built being orig- 

 inally part of the farm. She continued 

 , in the ministry from 1790 to the date 

 of her death. May 2, 1842. In 1822 Mrs. 

 Hicks and her children sold the farm, 

 and she took up her residence with her 

 son Charles in Philadelphia. 

 ■ Joseph Rodman and Margaret 

 (Thomas) Hicks *were the parents of 

 eight children, viz: Charles, married 

 Elizabeth Cooper; Joseph, married Jane 



Bond; Elizabeth, married Jacob Woll- 

 ery; Margaret, married Amos Carlile; 

 Gilbert, married Phoebe Mathews; 

 Mary, married Elias Slack; William, 

 died unmarried; and Isaiah married 

 Mary P'lannagan. 



Joseph Hicks, second son of Joseph 

 Rodman and Margaret (Thomas) Hicks, 

 born June 12, 1780, died October 4, 

 1827, married January 2, 1804, Jane 

 Bond, of New^town, Bucks county, and 

 had nine children, the seventh of whom 

 was Tliornas Hicks, the eminent artist. 

 Cha-rles Hicks, eldest son of Joseph 

 RodmarT and Margaret (Thomas) Hicks, 

 w-as born June 12, 1778. At the age of 

 sixteen years he removed to Philadel- 

 phia, and learned the carpenter trade, 

 which he followed in that city during the 

 ative years of his life. He died April 

 20, 1855. He was married August 10, 

 1804, to Elizabeth Cooper, born June 

 19, 1780, died April 17, 1858, and they 

 were the parents of nine children, viz,: 

 William C, Isaac, Ann C, Joseph, Wil- 

 let, Charles C, Cooper, Rodman, and 

 Elizabeth. 



Willet Hicks, fifth son of Charles and 

 Elizabeth (Cooper) Hicks, born Feb- 

 ruary 21, 1814, died December 12, 1853, 

 married April 16, 1836, Margaret Mint- 

 zer, born June 26, 1816, died January 5, 

 1899, and had six children, viz.: George 

 A.; Edwin M.; S. Pllizabeth; Albert M.; 

 William U.; and Harry H. 



George A. Hicks, to whom we are in- 

 debted for a history of the earlier gener- 

 ations of the Hicks family, is the eld- 

 est son of Willet and Margaret Mintzer 

 Hicks, and was born in Philadelphia. 

 Earlj' in life he learned the trade of a 

 plumber, and has followed that business 

 to the present time in his native city. He 

 takes deep interest in Bucks county, the 

 home of his ancestors. He is one of the 

 active members of the Bucks County 

 Historical Society, and is a regular at- 

 tendant at its meetings, and contribut- 

 ing largely to its success. Previous to 

 manhood he imited himself with the 

 United .States Hose Company, No. 14, 

 (late Volunteer Fire Department of 

 Philadelphia) and served as its secre- 

 tary for many years. He is a member of 

 the Veteran Firemen's Association, the 

 Firemen's Association, State of Penn- 

 sylvania, and a life member of the As- 

 sociation for. the Relief of Disabled Fire- 

 men. He is an honorary life member 

 of Columbia Lodge No. 91, F. and A. 

 M., and an honorary life member of 

 Harmony Chapter. No. 52, R. A. M.; a 

 member of the Master Plumbers' As- 

 sociation, and a stockholder in the Mer- 

 cantile Library, all of Philadelphia. Mr. 

 Hicks was never married. 



EDWARD P. HICKS. Isaac Hicks, 

 the eldest son of Gilbert and Mary 

 (Rodman) Hicks, an account of whose 



