Dover has a long and interesting history reach back into the days following the turn of the 19th century. Many of Dover's homes from the Victorian Era survive, as well as a scattering of Greek Revival and Federal style homes.

A brief history of our City follows. To see some of Dover's older homes, or some items of interest from our area's past, please choose:

A Brief History of Dover

Dover is rapidly approaching its 200th birthday.

No doubt Christian Deardorff and his brother-in-law Jesse Slingluff had high hopes for the tiny community they laid out in 1806. In that thirtieth year in the life of the United States, Thomas Jefferson was in his second term as President, Lewis and Clark had just returned from an arduous exploration of the Louisiana Territory and Abraham Lincoln was yet unborn. Deardorff and Slingluff purchased 2,175 acres of western frontier land for just over $4,600. The square of soil that would become Dover… in the east central part of what would become Ohio... was bordered by Front, 2nd, 3rd and 4th streets, intersected by Race, Market (now Wooster) and Walnut. The plat was filed in 1807, and left plenty of room for a county courthouse and related buildings. America was a very different place then; her largest city, Philadelphia, boasted only some 30,000 souls at the turn of the century.
Dover was slow to take root; by 1818, it was hard scrabble home to only five buildings, including three taverns and two homes, even though it was laid out to be the future County Seat. When Tuscarawas County was formed in 1808, New Philadelphia was chosen as the political center. When the census of 1820 counted heads, Dover had achieved a population of 46.
Dover secured a leg up on growth when an important stretch of the Ohio Erie Canal was carved out next to the Tuscarawas River in the mid 1820’s. Dover was the only tolling station on the canal in Tuscarawas County, and the canal trade helped swell the population to 598 by 1840. By then, Dover was a milling center, with several flour mills creating the first real commerce in the area. It was during the booming canal era that Dover’s post office address became known as Canal Dover to distinguish it from the other Dovers in Ohio. This was a postal designation only and lasted until December 8, 1915, at which time it became simply the Dover post office. A new, WPA-constructed Post Office building was constructed in 1935, and still stands today.
Dover was incorporated as a village in 1842, with Joseph Slingluff elected first Mayor. Oddly, the charter was permitted to lapse, and Dover had no official government until 1867, when it was again incorporated. Dover’s incorporation as a City occurred on December 6, 1901.
Dover became a steel center early on, with the first blast furnace opening in the mid 1850’s. The first steel rolling mill began in 1867, and was purchased in 1882 by J. E. Reeves, becoming the foundation for the building of Reeves Steel. Mr. Reeves, his company and his family impacted Dover, and Tuscarawas County, in ways that are still felt today through such local treasures as the J. E. Reeves Home and Museum, and the Reeves Foundation, which annually contributes hundreds of thousands of dollars to local good works.
Dover became a rail stop in 1854.
Dover’s first school house was constructed in 1827 in a forested area on the south side of 4th Street (near the cemetery). There was a separate Negro School on West Front Street until 1917, at which time Dover’s school system was fully integrated.
Dover’s Water Works was established in 1898 on what is now the sight of the Dover Light Plant. It moved to 17th Street in 1935. Dover’s water remained untreated in any way until 1998, at which time a state-of-the-art treatment facility began operation. Dover was the last City east of the Mississippi to sterilize its water before distribution.
Dover made a far reaching move in 1898 when voters approved a $5000 bond issue for the construction of an electric generating plant. It would be a few years more before the light plant became a reality. After expansions and changes this facility today serves over 6000 residential, commercial and industrial customers. In 1935, submarine cables were laid under the river. As part of a major rebuild by the Public Works Administration (WPA) in 1938, a 400-pound pressure boiler was installed. In 1945, the river dam was built to maintain water level. Today, the light plant includes fiber optic cable in its list of up-to-the-minute improvements.
 Dover’s Fire Department was organized in the 1870’s.
Dover voters took the City “dry” in 1908, putting 22 saloons and two breweries out of business overnight. Dover became somewhat infamous during prohibition for official Volstead Act violations and many officials resigned in disgust. The City again allowed the sale of liquor after repeal of prohibition in 1933.
A coal strike in 1920 closed all steel operations for a grueling 13 months.
It became legal for Dover movie theatres to show movies on Sundays in 1930.
Dover’s steel mills, along with manufacturing facilities nationwide, converted to helping the war effort. Women employed during wartime at Reeves Steel made shell casings. On January 23, 1943, an airplane carrying leaflets for a war bond drive crashed in Dover, killing three, including one boy of 12.
Dover’s city building was remodeled in 1957, and the bell tower was removed. The bell can today be seen in front of the Utility Office on 3rd Street.
A 1% income tax was enacted in 1968, which has remained in effect and unchanged. A downtown renovation project in 1981 provided beautiful trees and winding sidewalks, with new, attractive street lighting.
Famous Dover natives include Master Wood Carver Ernest "Mooney" Warther, who is fondly remembered peddling his bicycle around Dover, helping children look for spear points in local fields, and providing a good story or two. Dover is today home to Warther Museum, which is an excellent look at this man's greatest works. Born in Dover were playwright Elliot Nugent (1899-1980), and Rear Admiral Herald F. Stout (1903-1987), for whom the U.S.S. Stout was named. Admiral Stout is interred at Dover Burial Park. An infamous native is Civil War Guerilla leader William Clark Quantrill (who is buried at 4th Street Cemetery).
Dover will begin her second century as a City in 2001. Dover will celebrate its bi-centennial in 2007.

With gratitude to the Dover Historical Society.