Dover, New Hampshire

Dover, New Hampshire
City
Downtown Dover
Seal
Nickname:  The Garrison City
Location within New Hampshire
Country	United States
State	New Hampshire
County	Strafford
Settled	1623
Incorporated	1623 (town)
Incorporated	1855 (city)
Government
• City Manager	Mike Joyal
• Mayor	Karen Weston
• City Council	Robert Carrier Catherine Cheney Jason Gagnon William Garrison III Dorothea Hooper Anthony McManus John O'Connor Deborah Thibodeaux
Area
• Total	29.0 sq mi (75.2 km2)
• Land	26.7 sq mi (69.2 km2)
• Water	2.3 sq mi (6.0 km2)  7.96%
Elevation	50 ft (15 m)
Population  (2013 estimate)
• Total	30,510
• Density	1,133/sq mi (437.5/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes	03820-03822
Area code	603
FIPS code	33-18820
GNIS feature ID	0866618
Website	www.ci.dover.nh.us

Dover is a city in Strafford County, New Hampshire, in the United States of America. The population was 29,987 at the 2010 census, the largest in the New Hampshire Seacoast region. The population was estimated at 30,510 in 2013. It is the county seat of Strafford County, and home to Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, the Woodman Institute Museum, and the Children's Museum of New Hampshire.

History

Settlement

According to historian Jeremy Belknap, the area was called Wecohamet by native Abenaki Indians. The first known European to explore the region was Martin Pring from Bristol, England, in 1603. Settled in 1623 as Hilton's Point by brothers William and Edward Hilton, London fishmongers, Dover is the oldest permanent settlement in New Hampshire, and the seventh oldest in the United States. It is one of the colony's four original townships, and once included Durham, Madbury, Newington and Lee. It also included Somersworth and Rollinsford, together which Indians called Newichawannock after the Newichawannock River, now known as the Salmon Falls River.

The Hiltons' name survives today at Hilton Park on Dover Point, located where they landed near the confluence of the Cochecho and Bellamy rivers with the Piscataqua. They had been sent from London by The Company of Laconia, which intended to establish a colony and fishery around the Piscataqua. In 1631, however, it contained only three houses.

In 1633, the Plantation of Cochecho was bought by a group of English Puritans who planned to settle in New England, including Viscount Saye and Sele, Baron Brooke and John Pym. They promoted colonization in America, and that year Hilton's Point was the arrival point of numerous immigrant pioneers, many from Bristol. They renamed the settlement Bristol. Atop the nearby hill, the settlers built a meeting house, surrounded by an entrenchment, to the east of which they built a jail.

Incorporation

The town was called Dover in 1637 by the new governor, Reverend George Burdett. With the arrival of Thomas Larkham in 1639, it was renamed Northam, after Northam, Devon where he had been preacher. But Lord Saye and Sele's group lost interest in their settlements, both here and at Saybrook, Connecticut, when their intention to establish a hereditary aristocracy in the colonies met with disfavor in New England. Consequently, in 1641, the plantation was sold to Massachusetts and again named Dover, possibly in honor of Robert Dover, an English lawyer who resisted Puritanism.

Cochecho Massacre

Main article: Raid on Dover

Settlers felled the abundant trees to build log houses called garrisons. The town's population and business center would shift from Dover Point to Cochecho at the falls, where the river's drop of 34 feet (10 m) provided water power for industry. Indeed, Cochecho means "the rapid foaming water." Major Richard Waldron settled here and built a sawmill and gristmill.

At the end of King Philip's War, a number of aboriginal natives fleeing from the Massachusetts Bay Colony militia took refuge with the Abenaki tribe living in Dover. The Massachusetts militia ordered Waldron to attack the natives and turn the refugee combatants over to them. Waldron believed he could capture the natives without a pitched battle and so on September 7, 1676 invited the natives—about 400 in total, half local and half refugees—to participate in a mock battle against the militia. It was a trick; after the natives had fired their guns, Waldron took them prisoner. He sent both the refugee combatants and those locals who violently objected to this forced breach of hospitality to Boston, where seven or eight were convicted of insurrection and executed. The rest were sold into slavery in "foreign parts", mostly Barbados. The local Indians were released, but never forgave Waldron for the deception, which violated all the rules of honor and hospitality valued by the natives at that time. Richard Waldron would be appointed Chief Justice for New Hampshire in 1683.

Thirteen years passed and settlers believed the incident had been forgotten when King William's War began and members of the newly formed Wabanaki Confederacy arrived. When citizens spoke their concern to Waldron, he told them to "go and plant your pumpkins, and he would take care of the Indians." On June 27, 1689, two native women appeared at each of five garrison houses, asking permission to sleep by the fire. All but one house accepted. In the dark early hours of the next day, the women unfastened the doors allowing native men who had concealed themselves to enter the town. Waldron resisted but was stunned with a hatchet then placed on his table. After dining, the Indians cut him across the belly with knives, each saying "I cross out my account." Five or six dwelling houses were burned, along with the mills. Fifty-two colonists, a full quarter of the entire population, were captured or slain.

During Father Rale's War, in August and September 1723, there were Indian raids on Saco, Maine and Dover, New Hampshire. The following year Dover was raided again and Elizabeth Hanson wrote her captivity narrative.

Millyard

Child laborers at Cocheco Manufacturing in Dover, 1909. Photo by Lewis Hine.

Located at the head of navigation, the falls of the Cochecho River helped bring the Industrial Revolution to 19th century Dover in a big way. The Dover Cotton Factory was incorporated in 1812, then enlarged in 1823 to become the Dover Manufacturing Company. In 1827, the Cocheco Manufacturing Company was founded (the misspelling a clerical error at incorporation), and in 1829 purchased the Dover Manufacturing Company. Expansive brick mill buildings, linked by railroad, were constructed downtown. Incorporated as a city in 1855, Dover was for a time a national leader in textiles. The mills were purchased in 1909 by the Pacific Mills of Lawrence, Massachusetts, which closed the printery in 1913 but continued spinning and weaving. During the Great Depression, however, textile mills no longer dependent on New England water power began moving to southern states in search of cheaper operating conditions, or simply went out of business. Dover's millyard shut down in 1937, and was bought at auction in 1940 by the city itself for $54,000. There were no other bids. The Cocheco Falls Millworks now has tenants including technology and government services companies, and a restaurant.

Antique postcards

• 
  The Old Corner c. 1892
• 
  Central Square c. 1905
• 
  Public Library c. 1907
• 
  Guppy House c. 1910
• 
  Old Brick Schoolhouse c. 1910, once located near Pine Hill Cemetery
• 
  Cochecho Falls c. 1910
• 
  Whitcher's Falls c. 1910
• 
  Pacific Mills c. 1912
• 
  Downtown c. 1913

Geography and transportation

City Hall

Dover is located at 43°11′28″N 70°52′43″W (43.190984, -70.878533).Template:GR

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 29.0 square miles (75.2 km²), of which 26.7 square miles (69.2 km²) is land and 2.3 square miles (6.0 km²) is water, comprising 7.96% of the city. Dover is drained by the Cochecho and Bellamy rivers. Long Hill, elevation greater than 300 feet (91 m) above sea level and located 3 miles (4.8 km) northwest of the city center, is the highest point in Dover. Garrison Hill, elevation approximately 290 ft (88 m), is a prominent hill rising directly above the center city, with a park and lookout tower on top. Dover lies fully within the Piscataqua River (Coastal) watershed.

The city is crossed by New Hampshire Route 4, New Hampshire Route 9, New Hampshire Route 16 (the Spaulding Turnpike), New Hampshire Route 16B, New Hampshire Route 108, and New Hampshire Route 155. It is bordered by the town of Newington to the south (across the inlet to Great Bay), Madbury to the southwest, Barrington and Rochester to the northwest, Somersworth and Rollinsford to the northeast. South Berwick, Maine, lies to the northeast, across the tidal Salmon Falls River, and Eliot, Maine, is to the east, across the Piscataqua River.

The Cooperative Alliance for Seacoast Transportation (COAST) operates a publicly funded bus network in Dover and surrounding communities in New Hampshire and Maine. C&J Trailways is a private intercity bus carrier connecting Dover with other coastal New Hampshire and Massachusetts cities, including Boston. Wildcat Transit, operated by the University of New Hampshire, provides bus service to Durham, which is free for students and $1.50 for the public. Amtrak's Downeaster train service stops at Dover station with service to the Portland Transportation Center and Boston's North Station.

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1790	1,998		—
1800	2,062		3.2%
1810	2,228		8.1%
1820	2,871		28.9%
1830	5,449		89.8%
1840	6,458		18.5%
1850	8,196		26.9%
1860	8,502		3.7%
1870	9,294		9.3%
1880	11,687		25.7%
1890	12,790		9.4%
1900	13,207		3.3%
1910	13,247		0.3%
1920	13,029		−1.6%
1930	13,573		4.2%
1940	13,990		3.1%
1950	15,874		13.5%
1960	19,131		20.5%
1970	20,850		9.0%
1980	22,377		7.3%
1990	25,042		11.9%
2000	26,884		7.4%
2010	29,987		11.5%
2013 (est.)	30,510		1.7%

As of the census of 2010, there were 29,987 people, 12,827 households, and 7,059 families residing in the city. The city grew by 3,103 residents between 2000 and 2010, the largest numeric growth of any town or city in New Hampshire. The population density in 2010 was 1,123.1 people per square mile (433.3/km²). There were 13,685 housing units at an average density of 512.5 per square mile (197.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.6% White, 1.7% African American, 0.20% Native American, 4.6% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.6% some other race, and 2.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.2% of the population.

There were 12,827 households, out of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.8% were headed by married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.0% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27, and the average family size was 2.89.

In the city the population was spread out with 20.3% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 30.6% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.7 years. For every 100 females there were 96.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.0 males.

For the period 2009–11, the estimated median annual income for a household in the city was $55,040, and the median income for a family was $69,980. Male full-time workers had a median income of $51,891 versus $36,167 for females. The per capita income for the city was $30,590. About 6.8% of families and 8.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.2% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Dover School District consists of approximately 3600 pupils, attending Horne Street Elementary School, Garrison Elementary School, Woodman Park Elementary School, Dover Middle School and Dover High School. Dover High's athletic teams are known as The Green Wave, and the middle school's teams are The Little Green.

Saint Mary Academy, a Catholic school, has been in downtown Dover since 1912, currently serving around 200 students from pre-kindergarten to 8th grade. Many students at Saint Mary's subsequently attend St. Thomas Aquinas High School, a Catholic high school located on Dover Point.

Portsmouth Christian Academy is located west of the Bellamy River in Dover, serving preschool through 12th grade.

The Cocheco Arts and Technology Academy (CATA) is a public charter high school with around 100 students. It was formerly located in Barrington, New Hampshire.

Notable people

Main article: List of people from Dover, New Hampshire

Historic sites

• First Parish Church
• Religious Society of Friends Meetinghouse
• St. Thomas Episcopal Church
• Woodman Institute

See also

• Dover (Amtrak station)

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Haddon, Celia (2004), The First Ever English Olimpick Games, Hodder & Stoughton, ISBN 0-340-86274-2

External links

• City of Dover official website
• Dover Public Library
• The Many Names of Dover
• Sketch of Dover, New Hampshire
• New Hampshire Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau Profile
• Dover Main Street Community

Sites of interest

• Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce & Visitor Center
• Children's Museum of New Hampshire
• Hilton Park at Dover Point
• Garrison Hill Tower
• Woodman Institute Museum