Dorchester Times: Awnings Coming Back To Main Street

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Awnings Coming Back To Main Street

Those of you who have traveled down Main Street Dorchester lately have likely noticed the work taking place at Ben's Iron Grill -- which will be housed in the former location of R Lounge, Longhorn Saloon, Pit Stop, Last Call.

Several readers have e-mailed us and inquired when the new restaurant, owned by Dorchester area resident Ben Haufle, will open for business. Our sources tell us that the grand opening will be around the first week of June, but that information has not been confirmed by Mr. Haufle.

We can confirm that Ben's Iron Grill will feature awnings on the outside of the building, bringing back to Dorchester the look of a bygone era. One reader told us that Ben's Iron Works will also showcase some of the classic interior features of the building, so that it might more closely resemble its appearance from 70 or 80 years ago. Whatever the case, we are anxious to see the building for ourselves once all the work has been completed -- inside and out.

We especially applaud the return of the awnings. We realize that awnings require extra expense and maintenance, but we believe they will greatly enhance the appearance of our community's Main Street.

The photo that accompanies this story provides a glimpse of Dorchester's Main Street at the turn of the last century. Pictured are ponies from the Elmwood Pony Farm, which was owned and operated by Colonel W.J. Thompson and located in the northeast part of Dorchester. This is one of the best photos we have seen showing our Main Street buildings in their former glory.

The buildings that will house Ben's Iron Grill were home to Grothe's Flour & Feed, as well as a barber shop, during the era this photo was taken.

We tip our hats to Ben Haufle for the improvements he is bringing to Main Street Dorchester and for reminding us of Dorchester's earlier years.

5 comments:

AnonymousApril 28, 2009 at 8:54 PM
They should try for the opening to be in time for the alumni banquet and memorial day weekend. There will probably be lots of people in town.
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AnonymousApril 28, 2009 at 9:11 PM
Get er done Ben, you are the big horse
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AnonymousApril 29, 2009 at 6:53 AM
Wouldn't it be great to see Dorchester's Mainstreet return to its old glory?! With a modern twist of course. We don't want it to look like we stuck in time, but it would be nice to see Mainstreet looking good again. Hopefully Ben's Iron Grill will set the precedent for future improvements. Can't wait until its done.
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AnonymousApril 29, 2009 at 9:59 PM
Ben Huaffle for Mayor
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AnonymousApril 7, 2010 at 4:29 PM
YEAH Dorchester! Thank you to Ben for dedicating yourself to this project. Owning a business isn't easy, but kudos to you for doing it and thank you for taking pride in Dorchester and your business. I hope you have continued support from the area. I'm bringing a crew from Lincoln soon to Saline County and we're stopping by for dinner and then hitting a movie in Crete.
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Dorchester: A Good Little Family Town

Dorchester, Nebraska (est. population 630) is located in northern Saline county. Close in proximity to Interstate 80, Dorchester is only 25 minutes from the state capital of Lincoln (est. population 250,000) and about 55 minutes from Omaha (metro population 725,000).

Dorchester's median resident age is 37 years. In 2005, Dorchester had a median family income of approximately $35,600. The median house value was about $63,000. About 95 percent of Dorchester residents commute to work via Interstate and highways.

The village has a quality public school, which received a $4.1 million expansion and modernization in 2008; it offers a small classrooms and individualized attention. Total enrollment of grades K-12 is around 230-250 students.

Ancestries of the Dorchester area are primarily German (42.4%), Czech (24.9%), Irish (12.5%), English (5.4%), and Dutch (4.9%).

Dorchester Historical Facts

* On July 4, 1871, the railroad reached Dorchester.
* Incorporated in 1881, Dorchester's population grew from 200 to 500 by 1882.
* In 1882, Dorchester had 90 buildings, 35 of which were businesses or public facilities. Brick buildings lined both sides of Washington Avenue for two blocks.
* Dorchester's longest-running newspaper was The Dorchester Star, which was published until the late 1940s.
* By 1889, Dorchester's population is said to have reached 800, while the town housed an opera house, a two-story brick schoolhouse with a bell tower, and four churches.
* By the 1910s, Dorchester had electricity, a water tower and a fire department.
* Dorchester's main arteries, Highways 6 and 33, were graveled in the 1940s.
* Dorchester's first irrigation well was drilled on Chris Weber's farm and rural electrification was finished following WWII.

A Village with History

Dorchester is one of the "alphabet towns" on the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad line built west from Lincoln. The town site was selected for its pleasant location in the northern part of Saline County, about eight miles west of Crete. This situation is an attractive one, being on the level prairie land, midway between the West Blue River and Turkey Creek. The first named stream is three miles north, and the latter about the same distance south from the town. Dorchester was platted in 1870 and incorporated in 1881. The name "Dorchester" came from either for a suburb of Boston by that name or a town in England. No one is sure. Two of the very first settlers were James Seely and Edward McIntyre, who both made Dorchester their permanent home.

Dorchester: In The Beginning

Here is a look at Dorchester around 1890, less than a decade after its official incorporation, as documented by Andreas' History of the State of Nebraska:
* POPULATION: "About 300, and is made up of a substantial and progressive class of citizens, who are moral and industrious. ... The town grew but very little until the year 1879, for the reason that Pleasant Hill, on Turkey Creek, a short distance south, was the county seat and naturally drew a trade for quite a large scope of country."
* BUSINESS: "The business and professional interests of the town are represented by three general merchandise stores, two drug, one grocery, one furniture, two hardware, and two millinery stores, one bank, two restaurants, two hotels, three livery stables, a post office, one newspaper office, two elevators, two lumber yards, two coal yards, two blacksmith shops, two lawyers and four physicians."
* SCHOOL: "The schoolhouse is a good one. The schoolhouse was built in 1872, since which time the public schools have been continually kept up. The present schoolhouse is 24' x 40' in size, two stories high. The school is graded and consists of three departments. The house is found too small, and arrangements will soon be made to increase its size."
* CHURCHES: "There are three substantial churches."
* HOMES: "The residence portion of the village is made up of neat houses of different styles of architecture, but none of them very large."
* NEWSPAPER: "The Dorchester Star, which was established August 21, 1881, by H. C. Bittenbender, who edited it until January 19, 1882, when he sold it to Ryerson & Bullock, the present proprietors. The Star is a bright weekly paper, five-column quarto, in size, and is Republican in politics."