Editing Daykin, Nebraska (section)

==History==
Daykin was founded by John Daykin, a train conductor and stonemason from Illinois. In 1869, John Daykin purchased land in Jefferson County, Nebraska that would later become Daykin. Besides founding the town, he remains most recognized for conducting the train that returned [[Abraham Lincoln|Abraham Lincoln's]] body to [[Springfield, Illinois]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.riversidecemeterycleveland.org/rs_hs_e.htm#daykin|title=Prominent Residents at Riverside Cemetery in Cleveland}}</ref>

Daykin at one point had a population that reached near 300 people. The town held businesses such as a doctor's office, a butcher, laundromat, veterinarian, hotel, blacksmith, furniture store, jewelry store and many more.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nejeffer/daykin.htm|title=Daykin Nebraska, Read, Investigate, and Learn About This Live Town|access-date=August 4, 2023}} {{User-generated source|certain=yes|date=June 2022}}</ref>  The Jefferson County Bank was built in 1887, and has been in continuous operation since then, surviving the market crash of the 1930s.

The former Daykin Public School was held in the present day Daykin Community Building after its erection in 1935. The Daykin Schools became a 12 grade system in 1926. Most of the original 1935 building structure remains, with the lower elementary class buildings being moved and the gym being minimized after a restoration. Today students attend [[Meridian High School (Daykin, Nebraska)|Meridian School]]. Meridian consist of the residents of Daykin, Fairbury, Western, Alexandria, and Tobias, creating the 303 Nebraska School District.

Two churches are located within Daykin, St. John's Lutheran Church, and St. John's United Methodist Church. The Daykin Immanuel Church is a few miles outside of Daykin. Both churches were created in 1888.

Daykin is known as the "Windmill Town". In the 1930s Daykin was featured in [[Ripley's Believe It or Not]], as having more windmills per capita than any other town in Nebraska. In 1949, a water tower was built. It replaced all but one windmill, which now stands on the lawn in front of the Daykin Community Building as reminder of Daykin's history.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.casde.unl.edu/history/counties/jefferson/daykin/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160205221955/http://www.casde.unl.edu/history/counties/jefferson/daykin/|title=Daykin -- Jefferson County|archive-date=February 5, 2016|access-date=August 4, 2023}}</ref>