The village of Lancaster, which later become Lincoln was “literally owned by the Methodist Protestant Church and the fewer than 10 families who came to form a female seminary,” he said in a recent column.

And the Methodist’s temperance influence continued into the 1960s, he said.

So Lincoln has been slow in liberalizing alcohol sale and licensing.

This most recent change may have caught some businesses off guard, so not every business with an off-sale liquor license may be selling beer and wine this Sunday.

A part of the city ordinance that will require people who sell alcohol to be trained and get permits got the lion’s share of media attention.

That requirement doesn’t begin until next year, but the rest of the ordinance took effect 15 days after the council vote.

Retailers were focused on the permit system, and the June 6 beginning date for Sunday sales caught some of them by surprise, said Kathy Siefken, executive director of the Nebraska Grocery Industry Association.

She wasn’t certain all businesses would be able to change computer systems that block the sale of alcohol Sunday morning in time.