At the age of twenty-one, after completing his medical degree in Philadelphia in 1782, Dr. Dick moved to Alexandria, Virginia, where he became acquainted with George Washington. While not Washington’s primary physician, he was one of three attending physicians with the President the night he died. He recommended a tracheotomy to restore breathing, but this still-experimental procedure was vetoed by his two colleagues, though it would likely have prolonged the President's life. According to tradition, upon Washington’s death, Dr. Dick cut the cord on the bedroom clock, stopping the hands permanently at 10:20 PM. Dr. Dick was an amateur artist, and a founder of the Alexandria Masonic lodge to which Washington belonged. In 1789, he succeeded Washington as the Lodge’s Worshipful Master, and as such laid the cornerstone of the District of Columbia at Jones Point in Alexandria in 1791. He accompanied Washington, and assisted in laying the cornerstone of the National Capitol in 1793. Dr. Dick also conducted full Masonic rites at Washington’s funeral, and he served as mayor of Alexandria in 1804.