Saturday, April 26, 2025
ADDISON TIMES MAJOR SPONSOR: STEPHENSON RIFE ATTORNEYS
Past is Prologue for Dorsey Block, Strand Theatre
A portion of the Dorsey block, as seen from W. Broadway, remains a hot topic for discussion, pictured here circa 1991. | submitted
by GEORGE YOUNG
Since 1883, the Dorsey Block has ignited debate - literally. This storied corner of Shelbyville has been the site of two devastating fires and a symbol of the city’s resilience, controversy and evolving identity.
Sylvester L. Dorsey, originally a schoolteacher and physician, moved to Indiana in 1856. After a stint practicing medicine, he turned to business, first in St. Paul and then in Shelbyville, arriving in 1868. During the Civil War, a railroad entered downtown at Broadway and Harrison, coming from Edinburg through the Five Points area before heading to Indianapolis. Dorsey purchased 10 acres of undeveloped land from the old J.M. & I. Railroad Company - land that now forms a large part of downtown Shelbyville. He platted the area into lots but retained the prime frontage on South Harrison Street, the Dorsey Block.
The land was largely undeveloped at the time of purchase, with only an old warehouse standing where First Baptist church is now. The warehouse was believed to be part of the railroad’s depot complex. There, he built several timber structures stretching from Broadway to Hendricks Street, all the way back to what was initially called Post Street, now just an alley. Thanks to a fire code exemption, Dorsey bypassed costly masonry requirements and built entirely in wood. This decision would haunt the city for decades.
On November 14, 1883, at 4:30 a.m., the first catastrophic fire broke out in the Hoban & Major implement business on the second floor of a building mid-block. The fire spread, and every structure was ablaze within six minutes. Within 20 minutes, the block lay in ashes. Miraculously, the only structure left standing was Dorsey’s own residence, slightly damaged but intact. Despite public outrage, Dorsey rebuilt the block again in wood. Arson was suspected but never substantiated.
Then, eerily and almost exactly 10 years later, a second devastating fire erupted on November 18, 1893 - again at 4:30 a.m. This time, it started in John F. Young’s livery stable on Broadway. Seventeen horses were trapped inside. Their panicked cries and the sight of their burning manes deeply scarred the town. None survived.
The outcry was immediate. Citizens demanded to know how the city allowed fire-prone wooden buildings to return after the first tragedy. By December of that year, the City Council expanded the fire code, requiring all new downtown construction to be in masonry.
Ironically, John F. Young, whose stable had ignited the second blaze, was serving on the City Council when the new fire code was passed. While no record of his vote survives, it’s believed he supported the reforms. In 1895, Young moved into a new three-story brick building at the exact location, proudly naming it J.F. Young’s Palace Livery. He operated there until he died in 1906, and the location remained a livery until 1915. Later, it housed a string of retail businesses, the last being Adams Paint and Glass. Shelbyville High School used the third floor for many years as a gymnasium until the Paul Cross gymnasium was built.
Sylvester Dorsey passed away in 1897, but his family carried on. In 1899, the Dorsey heirs constructed another brick building at Harrison and Hendricks, with foresight and durability in mind. The structure was designed with business tenants in mind, like an early version of today’s mini-mall plazas. In 1915, Charles Jackson’s Progress Laundry moved into one of these new buildings, built specifically to his needs: large, light-filled, well-ventilated, and fully compliant with all fire and building laws.
In a final twist of fate, in April 1915, the only part of the original Dorsey residence - spared in the first fire - collapsed bizarrely. The house was mounted on trucks and pulled south on Tompkins Street. In front of Hadley Kimberling’s home, one set of the truck tires struck a rut in the street (fell apart “like one of the new movable houses,” according to The Republican). Cleanup took the rest of the evening.
A year later, in 1916, the Strand Theatre was built, sharing a wall with the old livery stable. This was a common cost-saving construction method at the time, but over a century later, that shared wall has created additional controversy.
The City of Shelbyville placed barricades in front of part of the structure owned by Indy Asset LLC on W. Broadway in late 2023 while some local individuals were attempting to purchase tax liens and acquire the property. That deal fell through, and Mayor Scott Furgeson addressed the matter in his first Board of Works meeting in 2024.
City Plan Director Adam Rude, who shared updates on the property at that meeting, predicted that addressing the problem would be a long legal road. “Whatever ends up becoming of it, whether it’s shored up, demolished, or whatever the final solution, it’s going to be complicated and expensive,” Rude said.
He was right. Nearly a year and a half later, the board accepted bids last week ranging from $247,950 to $537,000 to demolish the structure, which were taken under advisement. But the next step will be much more complicated than selecting the lowest bid. The challenge of ensuring the public’s safety while also maintaining The Strand Theatre’s structure despite the shared wall will, like the block’s early days, take resilience as the area’s identity continues to evolve.
ADDISON TIMES MAJOR SPONSOR: FULL CANOPY REAL ESTATE
NOTEBOOK:
Indiana American Water will start its annual water main flushing of its water distribution system in Shelbyville beginning May 5 through the end of July. Crews will be opening fire hydrants to flush the systems primarily on weekdays starting at 7:30 a.m. through 4 p.m. The annual program allows for the company to provide quality, reliable water service and ensures fire hydrants are operational. Customers may experience a slight drop in water pressure or temporary water discoloration while this program is underway. Customers should refrain from doing laundry during the time the flushing program is taking place in or near their neighborhood. If tap water is discolored, Indiana American Water recommends allowing several cold-water faucets to run for a short time until the water runs clear. Using more than one faucet allows the water to clear more quickly.
A resident in the 200 block of W. Taylor St. reported another vehicle had struck her parked, unattended vehicle and left the scene. A neighbor described the other vehicle as a pickup truck hauling a trailer of wood.
HOOSIER NEWS: A bill to let utilities bypass some local laws to build new power plants on the site of old ones barely made it to the governor’s desk. Debates over local control are likely what led Senate Bill 425 to pass through the House on Thursday by only one vote. Communities that host coal plants set to retire are likely to lose jobs and tax revenue. Building something like a small nuclear plant in the same spot could help offset that loss and maybe save utility customers money. The bill would let utilities that want to do this bypass some local zoning and land use laws. But Rep. Matt Pierce (D-Bloomington) said right now there isn’t a permanent, federal facility for nuclear waste — which means most of it would stay in those communities. The bill specifically exempts wind and solar farms from bypassing local zoning laws. For years, renewable energy companies have said the patchwork of local ordinances has made it difficult for them to build in Indiana. (Indiana Public Media)
NATIONAL NEWS: Many companies that want to offset their corporate carbon emissions do so by funding large tree-planting operations around the world, with positive and negative effects. The positive is clear; for instance, planting vast tracts of eucalyptus trees, which are fast-growing and are about 47 percent carbon by weight. The negative comes down to drastic losses in biodiversity, replacing dense forests with uniform fields of trees but no other life. (MIT Technology Review/Numlock)
The Addison Times is pleased to offer free milestone announcements. Forms are available here: Engagement Announcement, Wedding Announcement and Anniversary Announcement.
Want the daily edition read to you? Struggling with your email provider filtering out your local news? The Addison Times Substack app will solve those challenges!
ADDISON TIMES MAJOR SPONSOR: MAJOR HEALTH PARTNERS
SHS Courier Archive Highlights
Feb. 2, 1954, Part I
Edward Adams, SHS freshman, was appointed by Congressman Ralph Harvey to serve as a page for six months.
Miss Eva Swanson took a leave of absence due to illness. Martha Rhoades, a former junior high English teacher, would take her classes for the semester.
SHS received a model heart, four times normal size, from the Indiana Heart Foundation. Mr. Barnett was in charge of keeping the heart.
Darlene Baker, a junior, was taking shop. She was the first girl to enroll in any shop class in many years. She had transferred to Shelbyville from Columbus, where she said girls in shop classes were more common.
A column titled “People Shelby High School Could Do Without” included: The wild drivers who circled school building at noon; Book borrowers who do not return your books to your locker after using them without your permission; Locker stackers; and Paper airplane pilots in the assembly.
The “Did You Know?” column included: Bobby Jones, 8A, eats a dill pickle every day as part of his lunch; It takes seven loaves or 224 slices of bread every day for the SHS cafeteria; The basketball team wears 27 outer and 21 inner socks when dressed for a basketball game; Frank Phillips can play a French harp and a guitar at the same time; Mr. Stuart has a twin brother.
This Day in Shelby County History
News around Shelbyville and the surrounding area as reported on or about this date in history. Selections are curated by The Addison Times from Shelby County Public Library Genealogy Department materials.
2005: Shelby County Commissioners approved waiving $936,847 in penalties owed on back taxes for the 88-acre site formerly occupied by Wellman Thermal Systems, which could help open the door for a new owner. The back taxes had all been collected, and there hadn’t been an offer on the property for well over a decade.
1995: With SCUFFY’s traditional end-of-drive banquet one week away, officials said collections and pledges were $84,000 short of the goal. The organization had reached its goal 40 consecutive years.
Point Blank Paintball, 837 Webster Ave., had opened in the old Central States Fiber factory.
1985: Shelbyville High School students Scott Brandt and Jim Hutton were named state finalists in an industrial arts competition. Brandt had made a screened shirt design and Hutton had created artwork on glass. The students went to French Lick to exhibit their creations. Local students who won honorable mention were Richie Clark, David DeBolt, Carl Eldridge, Mike Polston, Tony Adkins, Andrew Walton, Tony Stewart and Shane Griggs.
1975: An appliance store owned by Francis Robinson, 214 S. Harrison St., was vandalized. A suspect was arrested for breaking into the store and destroying thousands of dollars in equipment.
1965: Jack Towns, 529 Howard St., caught an 8-pound, 3-ounce bass at Schaeffer Lake, south of Hope. Towns and his catch were photographed for the paper.
1955: The Shelbyville News published a “Pledge of Cooperation” residents were asked to follow in regards to cleaning up the city. Among the items were not throwing trash on streets or sidewalks, putting trash in proper containers, keeping sidewalks in good repair and installing landscaping.
1945: Lawson Stine, 34, president of Sta-Tite Snath, died at his home on the Smithland Pike. The Republican cited “a complication of diseases” as the cause.
Betty Long, Gwynneville, received word that her husband, Pfc. Carlos Long, had been liberated from a German prisoner of war camp and would be home soon.
1935: Addison Township grade school defeated Shelby Township in softball, 25-2.
1925: Three Fairland men were found guilty on charges of visiting a gambling house. The prosecutor used 12 witnesses to testify that the James Rogers Store was in fact a gambling house.
1915: The children, the oldest nine years of age and the youngest was five, were taken in charge by officers after the kids stole items from the Index Notion Store on S. Harrison St. The kids had then gone to W.S. Major’s house and asked him if they could stay the night. He told them to go to the police. The kids went to K.M. Hord’s house, and Hord called the police. One of the kids said their parents wouldn’t let them enter the house. “When taken home by the police, this was found to be not so,” The Republican reported.
ADDISON TIMES MAJOR SPONSOR: Freeman Family Funeral Homes & Crematory
OBITUARIES
None today.