Built in 1768, the Dover Friends Meetinghouse is the oldest surviving 18th century Quaker meetinghouse in the state of New Hampshire. The Quaker movement in Dover began with the arrival of three Quaker English women missionaries in 1662. Met with strong resistance from Puritan officials, they persevered establishing a congregation in 1680. The Dover Religious Society of Friends’ current meetinghouse and their two previous meetinghouses, have not only been used for religious gatherings, but have served as a meeting place for such social and political activities as the plight against slavery. The congregation aspires to continue this practice “on behalf of peace and nonviolence, social, racial, and sexual equality; simplicity and honesty; and, in recent years, environmental awareness.”
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