Dover Church History
by Bob Gunter
Nestled among the houses, while waiting for a ride on the barge to Dover from Laclede, was an eight-room rustic building. It had been built on the banks of the river and was to become the summer cottage of the A. C. White family.
It was August 17,1922, and up and down the Pend Oreille river people stood watching the billowing smoke and flames shooting into the sky. Something was burning over at Laclede and by the size of the fire it could only be the A.C. White mill. The fire totally destroyed the mill, factory, and yards, costing in excess of $700,000.
White had been in the area since 1909 when he moved from Michigan to open the mill in Laclede. He had extensive knowledge of the lumber business and soon saw his company grow to include a sash and door factory, a mill, and a planer. This meant jobs for the local residents and they were hopeful that the mill would be rebuilt in Laclede but that was not to be. White decided to move the business ten miles upstream to Dover with plans to renovate and expand the idle Dover mill. The mill would no longer be in Laclede and over 50 houses and a large warehouse owned by White would be barged upriver to the new Dover location.
Dover Church
The mood of the residents of Laclede is summed up in the words of an unknown woman. In her diary she stated, "Well, the thunder bolt fell on Laclede. A.C. has decided to move to Dover. He bought the Dover Mill Plant, so I guess Laclede is dead."
Nestled among the houses waiting for the ride on the barge to Dover was an eight room rustic building. It had been built on the banks of the river and was to become the summer cottage of A. C. White and his family.
It was after the new house had been barged upriver and set on its foundation, that A.C. White made another decision that influences the area to this day. He decided the family would not use the house for their summer cottage but it would be used as a church. He gave it to the people of Dover for that purpose and the Community Baptist Church was born. The house had to have some alterations and the people of Dover helped pay the cost by having dinners at the church for the whole community.
Today, on every Sunday morning, the faithful are called to worship by the tolling of the bell in the belfry. Members of the Dover Baptist Church gather in the old building that got religion in a short but historic 10-mile barge ride.
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All photographs have been used with permission of the Bonner County Museum.
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