Born in Fremont, Ohio, the son of Rodolphus Dickinson and Marguerite Beaugrand Dickinson, Dickinson attended the public schools. He graduated from St. Xavier College, Cincinnati, Ohio, where he had studied law.
Dickinson was born in Fremont, Ohio, to parents Rodolphus Dickinson and Marguerite Beaugrand Dickinson. He attended his local schools before going on to graduate from St. Xavier College in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he studied law as part of his academic pursuits.