First Parish Church Site-Dover Point
About this property
The First Parish Church Site-Dover Point is a historic church site on Dover Point Road in Dover, New Hampshire. It is the site of the second meetinghouse of the First Parish Church, a congregation established in 1633. Built in 1653 and demolished in the 18th century, its well-preserved site is one of the few colonial church sites known to be fortified against native attacks, with a log palisade and earthworks. The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. Dover Point is a neck of land in southernmost Dover, separating the Piscataqua River from the Bellamy River and the Great Bay. Its southern tip, Hilton Point, is where Dover's first settlers arrived from Salem, Massachusetts in 1633. Their first colonial meeting house was built at that point, and its site has been obliterated by the construction of the Spaulding Turnpike. The second meetinghouse was built further north on the point in 1653, nearer where the settlers had established their first village. The meetinghouse was, according to surviving documentation, 40 feet (12 m) long and 26 feet (7.9 m) wide. Sometime between 1667 and 1675, it was fortified by the construction of an embankment with a log palisade on top. This defense was apparently successful in helping provide for the community's defense in King Philip's War. In 1713 a new meetinghouse was built at "Pine Hill", where Dover's center is now located, and services were halted at this location around 1720. The building was demolished later in the 18th century and the site abandoned, but its location remained well known, and was documented in local histories. In 1889 it was deeded back to the congregation, which has maintained it since. The site is located on the west side of Dover Point Road, opposite its junction with Forsythia Drive. It is marked by a sign and its road-facing edge is lined by a low stone retaining wall. The grassy area of the site encompasses the foundations of the church and the earthworks that surrounded it. The earthworks was a roughly rectangular embankment, from which there were projections at two of the corners. These projections are where elevated observation sconces were built. National Register of Historic Places listings in Strafford County, New Hampshire First Parish Church Dover website Archived July 29, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about First Parish Church Site-Dover Point
This page lists First Parish Church Site-Dover Point. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Nearby Battles
Questions about this property
When was First Parish Church Site-Dover Point listed on the National Register?
First Parish Church Site-Dover Point was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 26, 1983.
What type of historic resource is First Parish Church Site-Dover Point?
First Parish Church Site-Dover Point is classified as a site in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for First Parish Church Site-Dover Point?
The period of significance for First Parish Church Site-Dover Point is recorded as the listed era.
Can I research the history near First Parish Church Site-Dover Point?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near First Parish Church Site-Dover Point will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Strafford County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Strafford County.
Explore StraffordCounty ›More historic places in New Hampshire
Browse all historic places in New Hampshire.
View New Hampshirehistoric sites ›New Hampshire history
Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.
New Hampshirehistory ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near First Parish Church Site-Dover Point will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.