Dorchester Times: Let Us Know The Improvements You've Seen Around Town

Saturday, June 30, 2007

Let Us Know The Improvements You've Seen Around Town

Exactly three months ago, this publication asked readers: "What one thing in Dorchester needs immediate improvement?" We received dozens of suggestions -- some of which could be accomplished easily, while other recommendations were better suited for Dorchester's long-term future. All, however, were offered with the goal of enhancing the community's quality of life.

We agree with readers who have commented that paying compliments to improvements around town is just as important as offering suggestions. And we are happy to note some of the improvements that are occurring. As reader "Small Town Gal" notes, Tyser Welding and Repair is repairing its old building; Klein Construction has begun work on the new park shelter; the West Side Saloon has commenced its expansion to the north building; and plans are in place for Fourth of July activities.

As the Times has noted previously, the new electronic marquee is a wonderful addition to our downtown. We like the renovation of the City Park basketball court, made possible by members of the girls' basketball team. Several homeowners are undertaking home improvement projects. Also, we appreciate the new street signs at the corners of several intersections.

So as Independence Day approaches, we ask readers to send us some of the improvements they notice in the community and share them with other readers. By simply noting the small improvements, Dorchester area residents can rest assured that our community is headed in the right direction.

11 comments:

AnonymousJune 30, 2007 at 9:05 AM
Medians on Main St. look great this summer. Noticed last night that they were being watered. Looks wonderful.
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJune 30, 2007 at 4:30 PM
The blue house south of the school has great landscaping and one of the nicer floral displays in town.
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJune 30, 2007 at 9:43 PM
I like the potted trees outside city hall; it gives the village a quaint feeling and its a nice touch.

Someone was thinking there!
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJune 30, 2007 at 9:44 PM
Oh yeah, almost forgot, the flowers in front of the Post Office are quite something.

I'm impressed by the effort.
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJuly 1, 2007 at 10:04 AM
My husband and I love the old Sprague home on the spur northwest of town and across from Hedgehogs and Hubbys. The red,white & blue banners are a nice touch. It leaves visitors with a good first impression.
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJuly 2, 2007 at 11:57 AM
I took my kids to the park Saturday night and the grass was mowed. Very Nice.
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJuly 3, 2007 at 9:09 PM
Tyser's building looks great...what a great improvement that will make in our downtown. Thank you! Thanks also for those responsible for the flags around town. It is great to see the efforts made by so many. Happy 4th to all.
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJuly 5, 2007 at 2:14 PM
Thank you to whoever mowed the roadside grass north of town along the spur before the holiday.
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJuly 6, 2007 at 9:31 AM
The new siding on the old Conner's building made a big difference in how main street looked on the 4th. Of course the tractors and vehicles displayed looked good too. Glad they had a nice backdrop with that new siding. The bricks in the corner window look like a good start. Hope more people will join the cause. Heard several comments that the park building can't possible be finished for several years because the funds won't come in fast enough.
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJuly 6, 2007 at 2:55 PM
Thank you to the young ladies who removed the bindweed from the bushes and flowers in the boulevards before the 4th. Every little bit helps! Lulu
ReplyDelete
Replies
AnonymousJuly 6, 2007 at 4:39 PM
I second the comment on the old Conners Roofing & Gifts building. I never thought I'd live to see it fixed up. Buldozed, perhaps ----- but not repaired. Thanks from those of us in town.
ReplyDelete
Replies

Add comment

Village Dweller checks all reader comments to determine if they are appropriate for print.

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."