Whittier Falls – 93 Pleasant View Circle

Whitcher’s Falls to Whittier Falls
Creation of a new Dover neighborhood

Early Dover history showed that this area was also known as Whitcher’s Falls and Whittier’s Falls and grist and carding mills were located along the Cochecho River that flow’s near-by.  The area is now known as Whittier Falls and was once made up of two family developments constructed by the Dover Housing Authority that were called Whittier and Mineral Park.

From the early 1900’s until the land was purchased by the Dover Housing Authority (DHA) in 1952, this area was known as “Hollywood”, “Shanty Town” and “Piano Box Village” (named after the large wooden piano boxes that were used to construct some of the homes) because it was a depressed area.

During 1952-1953 the DHA constructed Dover’s first public housing here. Mineral Park Homes (Pleasant View Circle) opened in December 1953 and Whittier Park (Hampshire Circle) opened in June 1962.   The two developments include 184 units of family housing.

Over the years the neighborhood has had several very successful programs including the construction of the Seymour Osman Community Center and its after-school home-work lab; Hosting Dover’s first Police Substation and a very positive Police Liaison Officer program; Sponsoring 4H and Scouting programs; Opening the first public-housing resident operated- business – Whitmin’s Laundromat; Holding annual  neighborhood events such as a bike parade, monthly dinners, Easter egg hunts; Establishing a Headstart School; Creating Family Self-Sufficiency Programs; Home to Dover’s first organized Neighborhood Watch; A Resident Management Association; as well as hosting numerous neighborhood sports events and other resident enrichment programs.

For over a half a century the DHA family developments have gone through many changes, Opening Doors to Opportunities for its residents,  including its new name in 2017 – Whittier Falls; but the mission of the DHA remains the same – to provide a safe place in which live, work and play.

For more information about Whittier Falls, Click Here.