Decatur Dickinson was living in Madison, Wisconsin,
when the Civil War broke out. Returning to his home in
Tioga County Pennsylvania, he enlisted in the 45h
Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Co. I, rising to the rank
of 1st Lieutenant. At the end of the war he came to
Neillsville and began working for his Uncle Chauncey
Blakeslee as a clerk in his store. Decatur went into the
mercantile business with Robert McBride buying out
Mac Bride’s portion of the store in 1876. Called the
"dean of Neillsville's merchants", Dickinson's business
success led to the building of this amazing Queen Anne.
Black River Falls architect James McGillivray designed
the structure and G.W. Trogner constructed the
residence. The Dickinson house interprets the irregularity
of plan and asymmetrical massing indicative of Click on image to enlarge
Queen Anne design. The Dickinson house also exhibits
the strong influence of Charles Eastlake, an English furniture designer, through incised motifs, geometric ornamentation, spindling and the cut out detailing appearing on the many brackets. Perhaps the most captivating feature of the house is the multitude of roof planes. They create a complex composition of texture through light and shadow as cast by the changes in the sun's position throughout the day. The imbricate tympanums of the projecting gable ends exhibit: square, round (or fish scale), and diamond shaped shingles. In 1912 the house was sold to Marcus Hoesly, whose direct descendant still lives in the house. NR
EL – The structure is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places
LR – The structure is on the Local Historic Register
NR – The structure is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
