John (Johannes) Pickard was born on May 28, 1760 in Big Flats, Herkimer County, New York to James Jacobas Pickard and Gertrude Windecker, daughter of Hartman Windecker and Barbara Bellinger.
John served in the American Revolution. He enlisted in 1779 near Johnstown, New York. He served in the Continental Army under Captain Klock, Ruff, and House and in Colonel Jacob Kolock's Regiment New York State Militia. While fighting in the Mohawk Valley, he was captured by Indians who lived near the Mohawk River, and they held him prisoner for two years on the Mohawk, near Little Falls, New York until December 1782.
John married Magdelena "Margaret" Maria Garlock on January 6, 1784 at the Dutch Reformed Church in German Flats, New York. The family moved to Cazenovia, New York in 1796. They became residents of Chautauqua County in March 1816. John died on August 30, 1827 in Ellery, New York. He is buried in Red Bird Cemetery in Ellery, New York.
In an affidavit signed on May 8, 1852 before a justice in the peace in Niagra County, John's brother Conrad stated that "He well remembers his brother, John, singing the Indian songs and saw him dance their war-dances he learned while held captive by the Indians."
