Dorchester village was settled in 1843 by families from Midway and Sunbury. It was named for the Dorchesters in England, Massachusetts, and South Carolina, ancestral homes of the Midway people. Among the early settlers of the village were Captain Abiel Winn, Captain Cyrus Mallard, Dr. Edward J. Delegal, B.S. Busbee, W.S. Baker, Dr. Benjamin King, William Thompson, John L. Mallard, Thomas Mallard, Benjamin Allen, Dr. Troup Maxwell, William Stevens, Henry Jones, and Dr. Raymond Harris.