Delight in a trip to Dover
The spotlight is on the former mill town in New Hampshire as it celebrates its 400th anniversary
There’s plenty we like about Dover, N.H., a former mill town, once considered scruffy compared with its Seacoast New Hampshire neighbors — Portsmouth, Durham, Exeter. Mostly, we like that it’s pulled its bootstraps up time and again through its long, upand-down history. There’ve been raids and massacres, fires and floods, good times and bad times. Now, as it celebrates its 400th anniversary, the city has a thriving, revived downtown with an eclectic mix of restaurants and shops, historic buildings, museums, and parks. Come check it out. (For starters, the 37th annual Cochecho Arts Festival kicks off Friday.)
Start your day
Dover is about a 65-mile drive from Boston or hop on the Amtrak Downeaster train for the 1½-hour ride from North Station to Dover. There are several daily departures from North Station. It’s about a 15minute walk from the Dover train station to downtown.
Now, it’s time for breakfast. Get thee to The Sassy Biscuit for significant sustenance. This contemporary, lively breakfast-brunch spot serves refined Southern-style cooking, like waffled pressed biscuits with warm blueberries and sweet lemon butter, fried chicken biscuit sandwiches with apple beer jam, and biscuit French toast with Chantilly cream.
Fat Dog Kitchen, located next to the historic Strand Theater, offers “funky comfort food,” like heaping breakfast sammies (we like the egg, chorizo, goat cheese, and tomato jam), the challah bread French toast and the popular Fat Elvis, named Phantom Gourmet’s “Dish Worth Driving For.” It’s a messy, delicious stack of French toast, topped with peanut butter, banana, bacon, and Nutella.
For a more traditional start to the day, try Harvey’s Bakery and Coffee Shop, a longstanding, local favorite, serving breakfast and lunch, including homemade soups and chowders.
Get a history lesson
English settler Edward Hilton established the first settlement on Dover Point in 1623. In 1642, the settlement became part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Gradually, the settlement moved to the current downtown location, along the Cocheco River, just below Cocheco Falls. By the mid-1800s, the city had become one of the largest manufacturers of cotton goods in the country.
But there were hard times coming after the city’s manufacturing heyday.
You can learn about its history at the Woodman Institute Museum, spread across four historic buildings filled with interesting artifacts, historical items, and memorabilia. The 1675 Dame Garrison House is the oldest house in Dover and is furnished with Colonial and early American artifacts. The 1813 John Parker Hale House displays furniture, paintings, nautical instruments, model ships, antique household tools, and other items, reflecting life in Dover during its 19th-century manufacturing days. You’ll also learn about John Parker Hale, a lawyer, senator, and active abolitionist. The 1818 Woodman House features a Civil War exhibit that includes a saddle used by President Lincoln, and the museum’s collection of some 1,800 minerals, birds, and butterflies. The 1825 Keefe House displays a variety of changing exhibits in the Thom Hindle Art Gallery.
Continue your introduction to the city with a short walk along the Cocheco Riverwalk, meandering around a bend in the river and around one of the historic mill buildings.
History buffs could also visit the Pine Hill Cemetery, a burying ground dating back to 1731 with historic markers and tombs, and Hilton State Park on Dover Point, the location of Dover’s first settlement, with great views of the Piscataqua River.
Once a month through September, the Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center offers guided historic walking tours through downtown. You can also pick up DIY maps and information at the Visitor Center.
Play with the kids
If you have kids in tow, don’t miss the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire, with two floors of handson exhibits and play areas. It’s a bustling, colorful place where kids can dig for dinosaur bones and make fossil rubbings, handle the controls of a submarine, take a virtual underwater swim with sea creatures, and enter a dark cave to discover glow-in-thedark paintings. Tag along as they ride a trolley and board a gundalow, shop in the World Market, build dams at the River Model, engineer a power train, operate a weaving loom, and build an airplane to send it up a 30foot conveyor to take flight. Outside are learning gardens and a playground. The museum also hosts a variety of live performances, workshops, classes, and special events for families.
For outdoor fun, walk over to Fish Ladder Park, located near Central Falls on the Cocheco River, a small space with pretty views. Just outside of downtown is Garrison Hill Park and Tower; climb the tower for 360degree views stretching north into the White Mountains and east to the Isles of Shoals dotting the Atlantic Ocean.
Eat your heart out
Dover has an impressive array of restaurants, from fancy to funky, and everything in between. Ember Wood Fired Grill, housed in a former 1865 firehouse, offers an encyclopedic menu, covering all tastes. There are salads, burgers, sandwiches, and wood-grilled pizzas, along with entrees like the 48-hour sous vide pastrami short rib and miso curd cod. Sonny’s Tavern has great cocktails and reasonably priced dishes, with a touch of creative flair. Try the shrimp and grits, honey-hot fried chicken and biscuits, or the daily street tacos. The Thirsty Moose is a big, bustling tavern, with more than 70 beers on tap and decent pub grub (prime rib sliders, poutine fries, pizza, and burgers). Chapel + Main is a bit more upscale, a brew pub featuring dishes like smoked trout spread, Portuguese mussels, and steak frites. La Festa Brick & Brew Pizzeria is the go-to spot for families and hungry workers and students, a popular, casual spot with a buffet-style pizza counter. For something unique, try Stages, helmed by award-winning chef Evan Hennessey. The tiny restaurant is located on the third floor of a renovated mill building where Hennessey creates a multicourse dinner for a handful of diners. Each course is based on ingredients that were foraged, or available from local farmers and fishermen and women.
For more information, visit www.dovernh.org. For information on Dover’s 400th-anniversary events, visit www.dover400.org.