Poetry Contest

13th Annual Dover Public Library Poetry Contest

 The Dover Public Library is pleased to announce the 13th Annual Dover Public Library Poetry contest for grades K-12.  Prizes will be awarded in six different categories:  Grades K-2, 3 & 4, 5 & 6, 7 & 8, 9 & 10, and 11 &12.  Poems will be judged on originality, style and creativity.  Deadline for entry is April 15^th. Students may pick up information about the contest at the Dover Public Library, any Dover school library, or at our website at library.dover.nh.gov.  All participants are invited to attend an “Evening of Poetry” on Monday, May 18th at 6:30pm; refreshments will be served.  Students are invited to read their poetry at this event, but this will be purely voluntary.  For more information about the contest please contact Denise LaFrance at 516-6082.

HeritageQuest has a new look

If you are doing genealogy research make sure to take a look at HeritageQuest Online. HeritageQuest Online is now powered by Ancestry.com. If you have used Ancestry for genealogical or other historical research, the new HeritageQuest interface should look and feel familiar to you. A new Image Viewer offers basic and advanced capabilities without any plug-in, making it easy to share images.Image resolution is significantly improved with the addition of greyscale and color.

In addition, the content of HeritageQuest has expanded.

• Complete 1790-1940 U.S. Federal Census with images and every-name indexes for all years
• Additional census records such as Mortality and Non-Population Schedules, Indian Census Rolls, and more
• Expanded collection of genealogy and local history books with an all-new user interface, thumbnail images and hit highlighting
• 20,000 city directories have been added to the existing city directories in the Book collection, increasing the size of the Books collection to more than 45,000 titles
• Complete Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land record collection (NARA M804)
• Freedman’s Bank Records with full-page register view
• Interactive census maps 

You can use  HeritageQuest at the Library or at home. Pick up the password next time you are at the Dover Public Library.

Free Organic Gardening Course

Free Organic Gardening Course

at the Dover Public Library
March 23, 30 & April 6

The Dover Public Library is pleased to offer a free, comprehensive 3-part organic gardening course on consecutive Monday nights, March 23, 30 and April 6, from 6:30-8:30pm 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, 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 globalization and famine, organic alternatives of urban gardens, small scale farming, and backyard gardening. 

The instructor is Vincent Cirasole, an experienced teacher and commercial vegetable grower from Rochester. He taught physical education and organic gardening in New York before relocating to NH in 2013.  He is a Master Gardener and organic growing enthusiast who owned a landscape gardening business for 18 years and a 12,000 square foot commercial organic garden for 11 years. For seven years, he was on the Board of Directors for the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York.

Over a period of years, Cirasole devised this popular tri-part course which has garnered great enthusiasm from participants who’ve praised its usefulness.  Reference material and sources of additional information will be distributed to all at no charge, but pre-registration is required.  Interested gardeners may call the Dover Public Library at 603-516-6050 before March 20 to sign up for Mr. Cirasole’s course, or you may register online at http://www.eventkeeper.com/code/events.cfm?curOrg=DOVER.

New England Harp Orchestra

New England Irish Harp Orchestra at Dover Library

Join the fun on St. Patrick‘s Day, March 17, at 7pm at the Dover Public Library as we host a holiday performance by members of the New England Irish Harp Orchestra.  NEIHO are a lively band of harpers who love creating Celtic music together and having fun. The ensemble, led by Director Regina Delaney, will perform traditional Irish dance tunes, slow airs, and songs.

Members, who range in age from the mid-twenties to mid-eighties, come from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. The Orchestra has been performing for six years throughout New England. They have recently released a new CD, “Another County Heard From”, a collection of tunes orchestrated and arranged by various NEIHO members and friends, and it will be available for sale. 

The concert is sponsored by the Friends of the Library who feel extremely lucky to be able to have them here on St. Patrick's Day! Come and celebrate by wearing green and enjoying some great Irish music. For more information, call the Dover Public Library at 516-6050.