History

The history of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church of Dover, New Hampshire begins at the turn of the twentieth century, when young Greek men left their villages in Greece and made their way to Dover, drawn by work at the Cocheco Manufacturing Company's mills and the promise of opportunity in America. They lived close to one another, sharing their language, their heritage, and the joys and sorrows of immigrant life. Their first Greek Orthodox Church was established in 1906 on the corner of lower Washington and Main Streets, directly across from the Number One Mill of the Cocheco Company, a deliberate choice that placed their church in the heart of where their people worked.

The community's commitment to its heritage ran deep from the beginning. In 1911 the Dover Greek community purchased land on Spur Road that became the first Greek Orthodox Cemetery in the United States owned by its local parish. Services later moved to a church on Mechanic Street, above which a Greek School provided afternoon instruction in the language and culture of the old country for children who had already spent long days in American public schools.

By the 1930s the community had grown and was well established enough to purchase the Unitarian Church on Locust Street, the site of the present church, converting it into a house of worship, Greek school, meeting place, and social center. The Alkistis Greek Ladies Society, founded in 1923, was instrumental in the community's financial life and fundraising efforts for decades. Then, on December 2, 1956, fire struck and completely destroyed the building. The blaze had begun while services were being celebrated, but mercifully did not spread until the congregation had safely gone home. The church was underinsured, and the challenge of rebuilding seemed daunting, but the spirit of the community rose to meet it. A fund drive raised pledges of $38,000, with contributions ranging from large donations to coins wrapped in handkerchiefs. Money also arrived from Greek communities across New England, a testament to Hellenic solidarity. Members of the Dover community provided space for services at Saint Thomas Episcopal Church, while Greek school classes were held at the Jewish Community Center and the First Parish Congregational Church. A new building was designed by an architectural firm from Manchester and constructed by a company from Exeter, with the remnants of the old church used to fill in a pond behind the property, creating the parking lot that stands there today. The twenty-year mortgage was paid off in just eight and a half years. The new church was consecrated by Archbishop Iakovos on November 14, 1966.

In 1992, Great Benefactor Alexandra Demosthenes bequeathed her estate to the parish, enabling the construction of a new addition with office space, a library, and classrooms for Greek and Sunday School. Metropolitan Methodios officially dedicated the addition in April 1999. The parish is also blessed with a Hellenic Center on more than fourteen acres of land on Long Hill Road, donated by five devoted parishioners, which has served as the site of festivals and celebrations for the broader community.

Today, the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church serves more than 300 Orthodox Christian families throughout the New Hampshire Seacoast at 93 Locust Street in Dover, a diverse community of Greek, Arab, Russian, Romanian, and American-born faithful, all united in the ancient Orthodox Christian faith that their immigrant founders carried across the ocean more than a century ago.