Dover400, a committee of residents organizing Dover’s 400th Anniversary, concludes its monthly virtual lecture series on Tuesday, December 14, 2021, at 7:00PM with an online showing of the film “Voices From the Cemetery”, an historical and entertaining montage which visits with two dozen prominent and provocative citizens from Dover’s past. Each is buried at Pine Hill Cemetery, but each comes back to life in this production, which was filmed in September 2020 for the Woodman Museum. Several Pine Hill Cemetery re-enactment events have taken place over the past decade with in-person tours, but this version was created solely on film, without crowds, due to the pandemic. The Dover400 Committee is grateful to the Woodman Museum and to filmmaker Mike Gillis for allowing us to show the film online on the 14th.
“Voices From the Cemetery” features some familiar characters that have appeared in re-enactments before, but also some new and interesting faces and stories which will guarantee new historical knowledge about our city, and also perhaps a laugh or two! Watch the movie to enjoy, among the cast, sea captains, governors and senators, a Civil War nurse, an eccentric curmudgeon, Dover’s first mayor and his wife, two hilarious librarians, a renowned painter, a couple of impressive female entrepreneurs, Dover’s first hanging victim, a prominent druggist, the secret fiancé of John Wilkes Booth, and of course, the Weeping Bride will make an appearance too.
Each Dover400 presentation is free and open to the public, but pre-registration is required. To sign up for the December 14, 2021 lecture, please RSVP on www.Dover400.org.
The earlier eleven lectures in the series (presented January through November) can be viewed online if you missed them. They consecutively cover Dover history from the early 17th to the mid-20th centuries and can be found here: https://dovernh.viebit.com/index.php?folder=Dover400 or on the Dover400.org website.
Dover400 is currently underway with two fundraising campaigns, “$400 for 400”, an effort to solicit 400 donors at $400 to celebrate Dover’s 400th Anniversary; and also “The 1623 Society” with membership available for a donation of $1623. All proceeds will support the activities planned throughout 2023. Donations may be sent to Dover400, 24 Chestnut St., Dover, NH 03820. For more information, please visit www.Dover400.org.
