Dorchester Times: Carol Olson Is Our 'Citizen Of The Year'

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Carol Olson Is Our 'Citizen Of The Year'

The Dorchester area has many movers and shakers. So last month, we asked Times readers to send us their nominations for the Times' Dorchester Citizen of the Year.

Over the past 30 days, we have received the names of many people who deserve recognition for their work to improve their neighbors' quality of life. Unfortunately, we can give the award to only one person.

The 2007 Times' Citizen of the Year award goes to longtime Dorchester resident Carol Olson. Carol is the president of the Dorchester Area Community Association (DACA) and the community foundation. She is also active within the Dorchester Methodist Church and other organizations; she is the Plymouth office manager for Farmers Cooperative, headquartered in Dorchester.

One reader who nominated Olson told us: "I’d like to nominate Carol Olson ... I know of no one who works as tirelessly and enthusiastically as Carol on a multitude of projects to better the community of Dorchester. She’s skilled at working with people and providing leadership, and is experienced and talented at engaging others in teamwork to accomplish goals."

Carol told the Times: "I believe the Lord gives us tools and opportunities to accomplish much, and if our minds are open to listening and following, there is much to be done. Though I appreciate this award, it must be noted that one person cannot accomplish very much -- but teamed with the many good people of this community, there is much that can be done. So I accept this award for everyone who has done something to make Dorchester a better place to live." Our congratulations to Carol, as well as other residents who were nominated. To see the list of nominations and comments, click here.

4 comments:

AnonymousDecember 28, 2007 at 8:40 PM
Congrats Carol,

Thanks for all you do for our community and town, I wish there were more people like you. Thanks for all your efforts.
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AnonymousDecember 31, 2007 at 1:08 PM
Congratulations, Carol! How very deserving you are. More of your many characteristics of good leadership shine through in your comments about this award: "humility and acknowledgement of all those who contribute."
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AnonymousJanuary 2, 2008 at 10:45 AM
Congrats and a huge Thank You. Our community owes a lot. I hope you realize how much we appreciate all you do.
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AnonymousNovember 18, 2008 at 2:39 AM
i david kioko from kenya now a student at catholic uiversity of eastern africa.could this carol be the one who sponsered my education when i was young?reply through davylast@yahoo.com
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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."