Major Elbert Dickason
Major Elbert Dickason founder of Wyocena, was born in Virginia in 1799. He moved to Illinois where he joined their militia during the Black Hawk War. Representing a Milwaukee land investor, he founded Columbus in 1839. When his ventures failed in 1843, he moved with his wife Obedience and family to Wyocena. He purchased land for $1.25 per acre, built a cabin, and surveyed, platted, and named the future settlement.
Erected 2000
Dickason's "Hotel"
Major Elbert Dickason's log cabin became a refuge for many land buyers who flocked to this area in the 1840s. In 1846, Dickason began construction of a two-story frame hotel to accommodate the buyers. Unfortunately, Dickason died in 1848, before the hotel was completed and his relatives finished the structure. Eventually, the hotel was sold to Columbia County as the county's first home for the mentally impaired and the poor. The building served in this capacity for over 100 years.
Erected 2000
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