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.

Etymology
History
Geography and transportation
Demographics
Education
Notable people
In popular culture
Historic sites
See also

Etymology

The city is named for Dover, Kent, England. First recorded in its Latinised form of Portus Dubris, the word "Dover" derives from the Brythonic word for "waters" (dwfr in Middle Welsh). The same element is present in the word's French (Douvres) and Modern Welsh (Dofr) forms.

History

Settlement

The first known European to explore the region was Martin Pring from Bristol, England, in 1603. In 1623, William and Edward Hilton settled Cochecho Plantation, adopting its Abenaki name, making Dover the oldest permanent settlement in New Hampshire, and seventh in the United States. One of the colony's four original townships, it then included Durham, Madbury, Newington, Lee, Somersworth and Rollinsford.

The Hiltons' name survives at Hilton Park on Dover Point (which was originally known as Hilton Point), where the brothers settled near the confluence of the Bellamy and Piscataqua rivers. They were fishmongers sent from London by The Company of Laconia to establish a colony and fishery on the Piscataqua. In 1631, however, it contained only three houses. William Hilton built a salt works on the property (salt-making was the principal industry in his hometown of Northwich, England). He also served as Deputy to the General Court (the colonial legislature).

In 1633, Cochecho Plantation 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 received numerous immigrants, many from Bristol. They renamed the settlement Bristol. Atop the nearby hill they built a meetinghouse surrounded by an entrenchment, with a jail nearby.

Incorporation

The town was called Dover in 1637 by the new governor, Reverend George Burdett. It was possibly named after Robert Dover, an English lawyer who resisted Puritanism. With the 1639 arrival of Thomas Larkham, however, it was renamed after Northam in 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 plan to establish a hereditary aristocracy in the colonies met disfavor in New England. Consequently, the plantation was sold in 1641 to Massachusetts and again named Dover.

Settlers built fortified log houses called garrisons, inspiring Dover's nickname "The Garrison City." The population and business center shifted upriver from Dover Point to Cochecho Falls, its drop of 34 feet (10 m) providing water power for industry (Cochecho means "the rapid foaming water.")

Cochecho Massacre

On June 28, 1689, Dover suffered a devastating attack by Indians. It was revenge for an incident on September 7, 1676, when 400 braves were duped by Major Richard Waldron into performing a "mock battle" near Cochecho Falls. After discharging their weapons, the braves were captured. Half were sent to Massachusetts for predations committed during King Philip's War, then either hung or sold into slavery. Local braves deemed innocent were released, but considered the deception a dishonorable breach of hospitality. Thirteen years passed. When colonists thought the episode forgotten, they struck. Fifty-two colonists, a quarter of the population, were either 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.

Cocheco River from Henry Law Park

Mill era

Child laborers at Cocheco Manufacturing Company in 1909, photo by Lewis Hine.

Located at the head of navigation, Cochecho Falls brought 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), which in 1829 purchased the Dover Manufacturing Company. Expansive brick mills, linked by railroad, were constructed downtown. Incorporated as a city in 1855, Dover for a time became a leading national producer of 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 in 1937, then was bought at auction in 1940 by the city itself for $54,000. There were no other bids. Now called the Cocheco Falls Millworks, its tenants include technology and government services companies, plus 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

Downtown Dover

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) are land and 2.3 square miles (6.0 km²) are water, comprising 7.97% of the city. Dover is drained by the Cochecho and Bellamy rivers, both of which flow into the tidal Piscataqua River, which forms the city's eastern boundary and the New Hampshire–Maine border. Long Hill, elevation greater than 300 feet (91 m) above sea level and located 3 miles (5 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.

The city is crossed by New Hampshire Routes 4, 9, 16 (the Spaulding Turnpike), 108, and 155, plus U.S. Route 4. 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, and 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 Bus Lines is a private intercity bus carrier currently connecting Dover with Boston's South Station and Logan Airport, as well as New York City (via Midtown Manhattan's Port Authority Bus Terminal). 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 the Dover Transportation Center with service to the Portland Transportation Center, Boston's North Station, and intermediate stops.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
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%
2020	32,741	9.2%
2022 (est.)	33,416	11.4%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the 2020 census, there were 32,741 people, 14,431 households, and 7,059 families residing in the city. The city grew by 2,754 residents between 2010 and 2020, the third-largest numeric growth of a town or city in New Hampshire, after Manchester and Nashua. The population density in 2020 was 1,224.88 people per square mile (472.93/km²). There were 15,166 housing units at an average density of 567.38 per square mile (219.07/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.2% White, 1.7% African American, 0.20% Native American, 5.1% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.2% some other race, and 4.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.9% 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 2009–2011, 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 serves approximately 4,000 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 about 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 about 100 students. It was formerly located in Barrington, New Hampshire.

The Seacoast Charter School is a publicly funded elementary/middle school that integrates the arts into the core curriculum. The school was founded in 2004 in Kingston, New Hampshire, and relocated to Dover in 2015. Enrollment in January 2016 was 215 students in grades K–8.

Notable people

In popular culture

Dover was used as the fictional setting for the Hallmark Channel movie Christmas Incorporated.

Historic sites

First Parish Church
New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 51: Dr. Jeremy Belknap (1744–1798)
New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 92: Hilton's Point – 1623
New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 165: The Alexander Scammell Bridge over the Bellamy River
New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 264: Home of John Parker Hale, 1840–1873
New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 282: Native Retribution Against Maj. Waldron
New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 289: Creation of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Religious Society of Friends Meetinghouse
St. Thomas Episcopal Church
Woodman Institute

Dover, New Hampshire facts for kids

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