Anna Lea Dawson

The youngest child of William and Susannah Scott Dawson.

The Dawson family was a middle class family that lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1809, four year old William Dawson (1805-1888) moved, with his family, from Wilmington, Delaware, to the Pittsburgh area. In 1832, Dawson married Susannah Scott (1810-1902), and worked as a steamboat captain on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. Dawson remained in the area throughout his life and played a role in the local community. He helped to organize the North Presbyterian Church in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania in 1863 and served as its ruling elder. William and Susannah had six children: Mary Elizabeth (1833-), Harriet Jane (1836-), Caroline (1840-), William Albert (1843-1923), Edwin Alexander (1845-), and Annie Lea (1850-1871).