Dover, Massachusetts facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Dover, Massachusetts
Town
The Dover Church
Flag Seal
Nickname(s):  Town of Friendship
Location in Norfolk County, Massachusetts
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
County	Norfolk
Settled	1635
Incorporated	1836
Government
• Type	Open town meeting
Area
• Total	39.9 km2 (15.4 sq mi)
• Land	39.7 km2 (15.3 sq mi)
• Water	0.2 km2 (0.1 sq mi)
Elevation	46 m (150 ft)
Population  (2020)
• Total	5,923
• Density	148.45/km2 (384.6/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (Eastern)
ZIP code	02030
Area code(s)	508 / 774
FIPS code	25-17405
GNIS feature ID	0618319
Website	www.doverma.gov

Dover is a friendly town located in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States. In 2020, about 5,923 people lived there. Dover is known for being a very well-off town in Massachusetts.

The town is about 15 miles (24 km) southwest of downtown Boston. Dover is a quiet, residential town right next to the Charles River. Most homes here are built on large plots of land, usually one acre or more.

Dover shares its borders with several other towns. To the north, you'll find Natick, Wellesley, and Needham. To the east is Westwood, while Walpole and Medfield are to the south. To the west, Dover borders Sherborn.

You might hear about the "Dover Demon". This is a creature that some people reported seeing in April 1977.

History of Dover

Dover was first settled in 1640. It started as a part of Dedham in 1748, known as the Springfield Parish. Later, in 1784, it became a separate district called District Dedham. Finally, Dover officially became its own town in 1836.

Historic Buildings

The Benjamin Caryl House is a very old home at 107 Dedham Street. It was built around 1777. This house was home to Dover's first minister, Benjamin Caryl, and his son George, who was the town's first doctor. Their family lived there until 1897. Since 1920, the town has owned the house, and the Historical Society takes care of it. The house looks much like it did in the 1790s, showing how the Caryl families lived and worked.

The Sawin Building holds many old items from Dover, like books, photos, and artifacts. Benjamin and Eudora Sawin left land and money to the Dover Historical Society. They also gave their old household items so the building could be built. It opened on May 14, 1907. At first, it was used for meetings and to store historical items. After a while, it wasn't used as much. But in the 1960s, people became interested again, and the building was fixed up. The Sawin Museum is now open to the public for free. It's located at the corner of Centre and Dedham Streets in Dover Center.

Geography

Dover covers about 15.4 square miles (39.9 square kilometers). Most of this area, about 15.3 square miles (39.7 square kilometers), is land. Only a small part, about 0.1 square miles (0.2 square kilometers), is water. As mentioned before, Dover is surrounded by towns like Natick, Wellesley, Needham, Westwood, Walpole, Medfield, and Sherborn.

Population Facts

In 2000, there were 5,558 people living in Dover. These people lived in 1,849 households, and 1,567 of those were families. The town had about 362 people per square mile (140 people per square kilometer). Most residents were White (95.18%), with smaller numbers of Asian (3.63%), Black (0.41%), and other backgrounds. About 1.19% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.

Many households (46%) had children under 18. Most families (77%) were married couples. The average household had about 3 people, and the average family had about 3.29 people.

About 31.6% of the population was under 18 years old. The median age in Dover was 40 years. This means half the people were younger than 40, and half were older.

Climate

In Dover, the temperature usually drops below 50°F (10°C) for about 195 days each year. The town gets about 46.9 inches (119 cm) of rain or snow every year. Snow covers the ground for about 52 days a year, which is more than many other places in the U.S. Imagine it like having nine full days of moderate rain each year. The air is not too humid for about 25.4 days, or 7% of the year.

Education

Dover's public schools are known as some of the best in Massachusetts. Boston magazine ranked the town's schools as number one in the state for many years (2013-2019). Dover has three public schools:

• Chickering Elementary School (for students in kindergarten through 5th grade)
• Dover-Sherborn Middle School (for students in 6th through 8th grade)
• Dover-Sherborn High School (for students in 9th through 12th grade)

There is also a private school called Charles River School (for Pre-K through 8th grade) located in the center of town.

Chickering School is managed by the Dover School Committee. The middle and high schools are part of a regional school system shared with the nearby town of Sherborn. These schools are on a campus in Dover, close to the borders of Sherborn and Medfield.

Dover-Sherborn High School has excellent results. Many students graduate and go on to college. The school also does very well on important tests. Boston magazine ranked DSHS highly for both its academic performance and how well it uses its money. U.S. News & World Report even called Dover-Sherborn a "Gold Medal School," ranking it 65th in the entire United States.

Dover used to have two elementary schools: Chickering (K-3) and Caryl Elementary (4-6). In 1970, Caryl School was badly damaged by a fire. It was rebuilt but eventually closed in 2001 after Chickering School was made larger.

Notable People

Soldiers' monument, first dedicated on June 18, 1910

Many interesting people have connections to Dover:

• Brian Scalabrine, a former basketball player for the Boston Celtics.
• Milt Schmidt, a famous hockey player, coach, and manager for the Boston Bruins. He is in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
• Jeff Serowik, another former player for the Boston Bruins.
• John Smith, an American football player known for kicking.
• Karen Stives, an Olympic medal-winning equestrian (horse rider).
• Dominique Wilkins, a famous professional basketball player and NBA Hall of Famer.
• Ian Bowles, an environmentalist and politician.
• Katherine Doherty, a child actress.
• Joseph F. Enright, a submarine captain in the U.S. Navy who sank a large Japanese aircraft carrier.
• Kenny Florian, a UFC fighter and sports analyst.
• Carl J. Gilbert, who worked for the U.S. government on trade.
• Jeffrey Harrison, a poet.
• Mark Hollingsworth, a bishop.
• Brian Hoyer, a quarterback for the New England Patriots.
• Bob Lobel, a local sports news reporter.
• Don MacTavish, a stock car driver who won a championship.
• Melinda McGraw, an actress.
• Dorothy Morkis, another Olympic medal-winning equestrian.
• Chris Murray, a minor league ice hockey player.
• George O'Day, an Olympic gold medal-winning sailor and founder of O'Day Boats.
• Bohdan Pomahač, a plastic surgeon who performed the first full face transplant in the U.S.
• Matthew A. Reynolds, a government official.
• Leverett Saltonstall, a U.S. Senator.
• George P. Sanger, a lawyer, editor, and judge.
• Francis W. Sargent, a former Governor.

Historic Places

• Benjamin Caryl House (built in 1777)
• Elm Bank Horticulture Center (built in 1876)

Dover Sun House

The Dover Sun House was one of the very first houses in the world to be heated by the sun! It was designed in 1948 by architect Eleanor Raymond. It had a special heating system created by physicist Mária Telkes.

A generous person named Amelia Peabody paid for the project. The house was built on her land in Dover, Massachusetts. Sadly, the Dover Sun House was taken down in 2010.

See also

In Spanish: Dover (Massachusetts) para niños