Dorchester Times: NEWS ROUND-UP: Jensen, Bird Are DHS' 2018 Athletic Royalty

Friday, May 4, 2018

NEWS ROUND-UP: Jensen, Bird Are DHS' 2018 Athletic Royalty

Courtesy Photo

Here is what is trending in and around the village:

Jensen, Bird Named DHS Athletic King and Queen: Dorchester seniors Jason Jensen and Makenna Bird were named DHS' 2018 athletic king and queen earlier this week. The honors were bestowed during this week's DHS Athletic Banquet held at the school. Congrats to these two standout student athletes for representing their school and community very well.

Big T's Hiring: We see that downtown Dorchester's famous Big T's BBQ Pit Stop is hiring right now. Those interested should contact Kathy Vossler at kmvossler@gmail.com or 402.826.0048.

Billing Specialist Job Open in Dorchester: Speaking of job openings, we have learned that the Farmers Cooperative's headquarters in Dorchester is looking for an agronomy billing specialist. This link will provide more information on the job.

Get Your Kids Better Reading and Math Skills: In the Dorchester School's May newsletter, it was reported that Dorchester Public School is offering summer reading and math camps to provide extra learning opportunities for elementary students. You don't want your kids living at home when they're 30, so sign up now because space is limited. Call 402.946.2781 for availability and more information.

Computer Coding Camp Offered in Dorchester: So much of our world is computerized. But computers and the software that runs them will only do what they're programmed to do. Dorchester Public School is offering a summer coding camp this year, and it will be open to students entering the 5th through 8th grades -- and it's free for DPS students. You don't want your child to spend thousands of borrowed dollars on a degree in German Polka History or Maya Civilization Survival Philosophy. Instead, make certain your kids have an employable skill! Contact Kyleigh Lewis at klewis@dorchesterschool.org for dates and more information.

2 comments:

AnonymousMay 4, 2018 at 8:03 PM
You guys need to do a story about the legislative race in our district since I'm sure all your readers are getting about 10 mailers a day from the candidates. Laura Ebke has disappointed me with some of her leftist votes on criminal justice matters, it's like she doesn't get that there are some nasty people in this world even if they don't live on her block of doctors. I'll still take her over that angry farmer from plymouth, Brandt. He scares me. Seems like he doesn't realize 95 percent of us don't own hundreds or thousands of acres of farm ground and we are getting soaked on our other taxes, not just property. Think about doing a story, blog folks.
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AnonymousMay 5, 2018 at 3:04 PM
congrats to the queen and king!!!!!!!!
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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."