Richard Ridgely Dashiell was born on August 18, 1816, in Baltimore, Maryland, to Alfred H. Dashiell and Ann Ridgely. His father was a Presbyterian minister. He lived in Baltimore until around 1826, when the family moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Amherst College in 1833, and he studied medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

 

He settled in St. Louis, Missouri, around 1837, and he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, two years later. He married Louisa Jane Kizer around 1841, and their daughter Emily was born around 1846. They moved to Jackson, Tennessee, around 1848, and his wife died the following year. He married Eliza Jane Taylor on January 15, 1850, and they had at least four children: George, born around 1850; Annie, born around 1853; Richard, born around 1856; and Alfred, born around 1858. He supported the Whig Party, and he voted for Winfield Scott in the presidential election of 1852. He earned a living as a doctor, and by 1850, he owned $1,800 of real estate. A decade later, he owned $10,000 of real estate and $6,000 of personal property.

 

He joined the Confederate army in May 1861, and he served as a surgeon in the 6^th Tennessee Infantry. The regiment took part in the Battle of Shiloh, the Battle of Perryville, and the Battle of Chickamauga.

 

He returned to Jackson after the war and resumed his work as a doctor. By 1870, he owned $5,000 of real estate and $1,500 of personal property. He supported the Democratic Party after the war, and he served as an alderman for two years. He also served as a local postmaster under President Grover Cleveland. His wife died in the late 1800s, and by 1900, he was living in his daughter Emily’s household in Lexington, Tennessee. He died in Lexington on May 17, 1907.

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