Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Dover’s best subject grades are an A+ for walkability and an A− for history. Only 75 of Pennsylvania’s 1,717 towns score lower on civic life. Englehart Melchinger House is on the National Register of Historic Places. Dover has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Dover beats most towns.
Census counts: 246 in 1850, 1,954 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 1933.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Dover is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Dover, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Dover.
Dover: 6% of residents live below the poverty line, below both the Pennsylvania town median (7.6%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). Only 2% of working residents stay in Dover for work; the rest commute out. Since 2013, Dover has lost 46 jobs, to 571 in 2023. The top destinations are York (10%), West Manchester Township (7%) and Dover Township (6%).
| Dover | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 1.9% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 6% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $75,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. Its public schools are run by Dover Area SD.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover Area MSLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 735 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
16% of Dover adults say their health is fair or poor. Against the Pennsylvania average, Dover comes out ahead on 6 CDC measures out of 26, and behind on 1. Dover: a fifth of adults binge drink, where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 18% and U.S. towns at 16%. Two figures for adults in the town: 9.4% have diabetes, 12% report frequent physical distress.
| Dover | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 16% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 9.4% | 11% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 14% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Dover | PA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.8% | 14.5% |
| Fewer adults who have had a stroke | 2.9% | 3.7% |
| Fewer adults treating high blood pressure | 75.9% | 79.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
A winter brings about 29 inches of snow, with January nights at 22° and July afternoons at 86°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Alda Ketterman Park | — | 12 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
2 flood insurance claims have been paid in Dover since 1979. Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 54% of U.S. communities. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Dover after 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2021.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Among households in Dover, 67% live in a home they own. Its typical rent comes in at $1,168 a month.
| Dover | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 67% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,168 a month | $1,115 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Dover. Close and well known come first.
Big draw36 mi LandmarkRaven Rock Mountain Complex
22 mi Theme parkHersheypark3.0M visitors a year
22 mi National MonumentCarlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument
24 mi Ancient siteGettysburg Battlefield
22 mi Stadium & arenaHersheypark Stadium
22 mi MuseumHershey's Chocolate WorldRaven Rock Mountain Complex: US Government, Public domain · Hersheypark: Michael Gray, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain · Gettysburg Battlefield: Veggies, Public domain · Hersheypark Stadium: 45BearsFan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hershey's Chocolate World: Phillyfan0419, CC BY-SA 3.0
4 within 15 miles of the center of Dover
About 2 of every 100 Dover residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
Where Dover’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Dover is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,954 at the 2020 census. The borough is located about eight miles from downtown York.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Dover.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dover | — | — | B− | — | B− | B+ |
| Weigelstown | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Dover has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Dover reports no FBI crime data of its own. Weigelstown isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Dover with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
The typical home is worth about $206,000, 28% below the Pennsylvania typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
