Dover, New Jersey
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This article is about the town in Morris County. For the former Dover Township in Ocean County, see Toms River, New Jersey.
Dover is a Town in Morris County, New Jersey, 39 miles (63 km) west by north of New York City on the Rockaway River. As of the United States Census, 2000, the town's population was 18,188. In 1900, 5,938 people lived in Dover; in 1910, 7,468; and in 1940, 10,491.
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[edit] History
Dover was incorporated as a village in 1826 and in 1869 as a town. The town charter was amended in 1875. In its past, Dover has had extensive iron and mill works, machine shops, stove, furnace, and range works, boiler and bridge works, rolling mills, drill works, knitting and silk mills, and a large hosiery factory (MacGregory).
Today, Dover has a large Hispanic population with the largest concentrations being of Puerto Rican, Colombian and Mexican ancestry. Hispanics have been a demographic majority since 1980, and are growing quickly. As of the 2000 Census, Dover's population was 57.9% Hispanic, making it the municipality with the fifth highest Hispanic population percentage in New Jersey and one of eight New Jersey municipalities with a Hispanic majority. It is often referred to as "Doverico" by residents of surrounding townships to mock the Hispanic dominance of the downtown, as these surrounding regions are wealthier and predominantly non-Hispanic. While Dover is not currently financially disadvantaged in comparison to average towns nationwide, it is considerably less affluent than those that surround it, thus giving the town a reputation of being poor.
[edit] Life in Dover
The community of Dover is centered around a developed downtown area that is filled with many eateries. A vast percentage of these are owned and run by Hispanics of different countries, and feature their ethnic food[1]. Dover is a haven for all kinds of eating experiences, from sushi to pizza and coffee shops to reknowned Irish and Italian food places.
Residential areas of Dover are known for their city-like lots, with portions of the down town area having rows of houses with little space in-between lining the streets. Other sections appear more typical of suburban New Jersey, where lots are bigger.... excluding the southwest corner of town that features larger yards and homes.[citation needed]
Every Sunday from April to December, there is a flea market downtown[2].
Hamilton Field is one of Dover's recreation centers, featuring a football field with bleachers, soccer fields, and a historic cinder track that is used by walkers and joggers. Townspeople and students gather on select Friday nights to watch Dover High School's football team, the Dover Tigers, play under the lights of Hamilton Field.[citation needed]
[edit] Geography
Dover is located at (40.885899, -74.558241)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 7.0 km² (2.7 mi²). 6.9 km² (2.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (1.11%) is water.
Hedden County Park, a 380-acre Morris County park, is partly located in Dover, with park entrances in Randolph.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 18,188 people, 5,436 households, and 3,919 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,620.3/km² (6,788.2/mi²). There were 5,568 housing units at an average density of 802.2/km² (2,078.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 69.45% White, 6.83% African American, 0.34% Native American, 2.47% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 15.99% from other races, and 4.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 57.94% of the population.
11.27% of Dover residents identified themselves as being of Colombian American ancestry in the 2000 Census, the second highest percentage of the population of any municipality in the United States behind Victory Gardens, New Jersey which had 15.27% of residents so identified[3].
There were 5,436 households out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.9% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.29 and the average family size was 3.55.
In the town the population was spread out with 23.2% under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 36.0% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 106.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.7 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $53,423, and the median income for a family was $57,141. Males had a median income of $31,320 versus $27,413 for females. The per capita income for the town was $18,056. About 8.2% of families and 13.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.5% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government
[edit] Local government
Dover Town operates using the Town form of government and is governed by a Mayor and Board of Aldermen. The Mayor is elected at large. The Board of Aldermen consists of eight members, with two Aldermen elected to two-year terms from each of the four wards. One Aldermanic seat comes up each year in each ward.
The Mayor of Dover Town is James P. Dodd, whose term of office ends on December 31, 2007.[4]
Members of the Board of Aldermen are:[5]
- 1st Ward: Cynthia Burbridge (2006) and Frank Poolas (2007)
- 2nd Ward: Cindy Romaine (2006) and Michael Ryan (2007)
- 3rd Ward: Patrick Fahy (2006) and James Visioli (2007)
- 4th Ward: Richard M. Newman (2006) and Jack Delaney (2007)
[edit] Federal, state and county representation
Dover Town is in the Eleventh Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 25th Legislative District.[6]
New Jersey's Eleventh Congressional District, covering western portions of Essex County, all of Morris County, and sections of Passaic County, Somerset County and Sussex County, is represented by Rodney Frelinghuysen (R, Harding Township). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Robert Menendez (D, Hoboken).
The 25th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Anthony Bucco (R, Denville) and in the Assembly by Michael Patrick Carroll (R, Morristown) and Richard A. Merkt (R, Randolph). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).
Morris County is governed by a seven-member Board of Chosen Freeholders. Morris County's Freeholders are: Margaret Nordstrom (Freeholder Director), John Inglesino (Freeholder Deputy Director), Douglas R. Cabana, Frank J. Druetzler, Cecilia G. Laureys John J. Murphy and Jack Schrier.
[edit] Education
The Dover School District serves students in Prekindergarten through twelfth grade. Schools in the district are Academy Street Elementary School (K-6), East Dover Elementary School(3-6), North Dover Elementary School (PreK-5), Dover Middle School (7&8) and Dover High School(9-12).
Students in grades K - 12 from Victory Gardens attend the Dover Public School system as part of a sending/receiving relationship. Students in grades 7-12 from Mine Hill Township also participate in the Dover district as part of a sending/receiving relationship.
[edit] References
- ^ Dover New Jersey Restaurants and Food Resources, accessed July 11, 2006
- ^ New Jersey Flea Markets, Fairs, & Special Events, accessed July 11, 2006
- ^ Colmbian Communities, accessed August 23, 2006
- ^ Mayor's page, accessed July 10, 2006
- ^ Board of Aldermen, accessed July 10, 2006
- ^ League of Women Voters: 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, p. 56, accessed August 30, 2006
[edit] External links
- Dover Town website
- Dover School District
- Dover School District's 2004-2005 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
- National Center for Education Statistics data for the Dover School District
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
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(County Seat: Morristown) |
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| Boroughs |
Butler | Chatham | Chester | Florham Park | Kinnelon | Lincoln Park | Madison | Mendham | Morris Plains | Mount Arlington | Mountain Lakes | Netcong | Rockaway | Riverdale | Victory Gardens | Wharton |
 |
| Towns | Boonton | Dover | Morristown | |
| Townships | Boonton | Chatham | Chester | Denville | East Hanover | Hanover | Harding | Jefferson | Long Hill | Mendham | Mine Hill | Montville | Mount Olive | Morris | Parsippany-Troy Hills | Pequannock | Randolph | Rockaway | Roxbury | Washington | |
| CDPs and other Communities | Budd Lake | Cedar Knolls | Cedar Lake | Convent Station | Flanders | Green Village | Lake Swannanoa | Landing | Lake Telemark | Long Valley | New Vernon | Port Morris | Stirling | Succasunna-Kenvil | Towaco | Whippany | White Meadow Lake | |
