Winter Break Fun for Kids @ the Library!

Join us at the Dover Public Library for a full week of free school vacation fun. Tired of the snow and cold but can’t get away? Come to our Beach Party on Monday, February 26 from 2-4pm. We will have summer-themed crafts, activities, and games, sure to help chase away the winter blues. Wear your beach attire to really get in the spirit!

On Tuesday, February 27, from 2-4pm the Children’s Room will be transformed into a Mini-Golf venue. Come practice your skills on our 9-hole course. Everyone who participates will be entered in a drawing to win a prize.

Teens are invited to a “Dancing Through the Decades” Escape Room on Tuesday, February 27. Students in grades 5-12 can sign up for either the 2pm or 3pm session by calling 516-6050 or online at library.dover.nh.gov.

On Wednesday, February 28 at 2pm we will host “Curious Creatures” from Groveland, MA. This family program will feature 10 animals including a baby crocodile, rabbit, tortoise, chinchilla, and a snake.

A special Teen Movie Night featuring “Mean Girls” (PG13) will take place on Wednesday, February 28 at 6:30pm.

Stop into the Children’s Room on Thursday, March 1 anytime between 2pm and 4:30pm to create a Silly Sock Puppet.

Kids in grades 3 and up can work with our Snap Circuit sets and accessories on Friday, March 2 anytime between 2-4pm. And the library’s Creation Station will have a “Make and Take” Hawaiian lei craft available anytime between Sunday, February 25 and Saturday, March 3. 

And don’t forget, we have plenty of books, DVDs, audiobooks, museum passes, and online digital media selections to keep you happily entertained during the winter break. Make sure the Dover Public Library is part of your vacation week plans!

3-session Organic Gardening Class: Feb. 26, March 5 & 12 from 6-8pm

The Dover Public Library is pleased to offer a free, comprehensive 3-part organic gardening course on consecutive Monday nights, February 26, March 5 and 12, from 6-8pm in the Library’s Lecture Hall.  The course, totaling six hours over the three nights, will include practical tips on how to create a new garden, soil preparation, seed starting, planting techniques, container gardening, cultural techniques during the growing season (such as watering, fertilizing, and pest and weed control), how plants and soil interact, succession planting, planting multiple crops in the same space at the same time, how to compost, crop rotation, cover cropping, and mycorrhizobials. 

     The sessions will also include discussions about our existing industrial food production system, including pesticides, genetically modified seeds, seed labeling and supplier concentration, globalization and famine, organic certification, and regulatory capture.

    The instructor is Vincent Cirasole from Rochester. He has taught physical education and organic gardening in New York before relocating to the Granite State in 2013. He is also a Master Gardener, a commercial vegetable grower, and organic growing enthusiast. Over a period of years, Cirasole developed this tri-part course, which has proven to be fascinating and popular with students. Reference material and sources of additional information will be distributed to all participants at no charge, but pre-registration is required.  Interested gardeners may call the Dover Public Library at 603-516-6050 to sign up for Mr. Cirasole’s course, or you may register online at http://www.dover.nh.gov/government/city-operations/library/events/index.html.

   

   

The Library Will Be Closed Monday

The Library will be closed on Monday, February 19th for President's Day.We will be open Saturday from 9-5 and Sunday from 1-5 as usual.

History of NH’s African-American Soldiers in the American Revolution: February 20, 7pm

     

 In honor of Black History Month, the Friends of the Library are pleased to welcome Glenn Knoblock for a program entitled “Strong and Brave Fellows: A History of NH’s Black Soldiers and Sailors of the American Revolution” on Tuesday evening, February 20 at 7pm.

       One of the most interesting aspects of the American Revolution is the role played by African Americans in the fight for independence. Both free African Americans and those that were enslaved were key in manning state militias and Continental Army units, as well as serving on the high seas in the Navy and on privately armed ships. Indeed, their service to the colonies was crucial in a conflict that lasted nearly seven years. Prohibited from serving in military units and largely considered “undesirable elements,” how is it that these black soldiers came to fight for the cause of liberty, even when their own personal liberty was not guaranteed?

       Glenn Knoblock will examine the history of African-American soldiers’ service during the war, including how and why they enlisted, their interaction with white soldiers, service on the battlefields, how they were perceived, both by the enemy and the officers under whom they served, and their treatment after the war.

       Glenn Knoblock is an independent scholar and author of fifteen books and over 100 articles. He has served as the historian on projects relating to northern New England bridges, New Hampshire cemeteries, brewing history, and African-American military history. Knoblock has served as the primary military contributor to Harvard and Oxford University’s landmark African-American Biography Project. He holds a BA in History from Bowling Green State University.

          This program is free. For more information, call the Dover Public Library at (603) 516-6050.

The Library will close at 3pm Wednesday

The Library will be closing at 3pm today due to hazardous weather conditions. You can still download books, magazines, movies, music and audiobooks while we are closed. Stay safe everyone.

Convert your older media to digital files with the library's new Memory Lab!

Do you have shoeboxes full of photographs?  Or carousels full of slides?  Do you have a shelf of VHS tapes of your kids’ school plays, or of Christmases past?  Do you even have a VHS player, or a slide projector anymore?  It is time to copy these precious memories to a format that will withstand the test of time, and the Dover Public Library can help you!

The Dover Public Library’s Memory Lab has the equipment you need to convert your photographs, negatives, slides, VHS tapes, and cassette tapes to digital files.  You can save these files on your computer, on a thumb drive, or in the cloud. 

The library offers three different Memory Lab Equipment Stations:  the scanner (for photographs, negatives, and slides), the VHS/DVD converter (for VHS tapes), and the Cassette converter (for cassette tapes).  You can make an appointment on our website to use one of these stations for free!  Appointments are for 2 ½ or 3 hours.  During your appointment, you can convert your memories to digital files. 

Please be aware that the VHS conversion and Cassette conversion occurs in real time. If you are going to copy a 2-hour VHS tape it will take 2 hours to copy the contents, with some additional time to finalize the DVD.  But no worries…the library has lots of books and magazines for you to read while you wait!

All Memory Lab apparatus comes with easy-to-follow, detailed instructions (with pictures!) telling you how to use the equipment. Library staff cannot do the conversions for you, but we can certainly help with questions as you start your process.  

The library is also offering tutorial programs to introduce each Memory Lab Equipment Station so that you can get the most out of your appointment time. Our first instructional programs will be held on Thursday, February 15 and Saturday, February 17 from 2-4pm, and on Monday, March 5 from 6-8pm to introduce the equipment:

February 15 & 17: From 2-2:30pm  the Cassette converter; from 2:30-3pm  the VHS converter; from 3-4pm  the Photograph, Negative, and Slide Scanner.

March 5: From 6-6:30pm  the Cassette converter; from 6:30-7pm  the VHS converter; from 7-8pm  the Photograph, Negative, and Slide Scanner.

You may attend as many sessions as you wish!

Come to the Library to take a walk down memory lane and save those memories for the future. For more information, call Peggy Thrasher at the Dover Public Library (603) 516-6050.