Daniel Hall was born in Barrington, N.H. on Feb 28, 1832, the son of Gilman and Eliza (Tuttle) Hall. He was the eldest of their nine children. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1854 at the head of his class. Soon after his graduation he became clerk in the New York Customs House. He held this position for four years before returning to Dover to study law in the office of Daniel Christie. He was admitted to the bar in 1860 and started his own practice in Dover.
In March of 1862 Mr. Hall joined the Army of the United States with the rank of Captain and served on the staff of Gen. Whipple where he participated in the battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. Later he was transferred to the staff of Gen. Howard and went with him to Gettysburg. In December of 1863 he left the service because of poor health.
In 1866 Col. Hall was appointed Clerk of the Supreme Court of Strafford County. In 1876 he was Chairman of the New Hampshire delegation to the Republican National Convention in Cincinnati.
On Jan. 5, 1877, Col. Hall married Sophia Dodge, the daughter of Jonathan T. and Sarah (Hanson) Dodge of Rochester. They built the large brick house at 55 Summer Street, in “Ricker Field”, a development in which he was a partner with Andrew Young and Samuel Fisher. They had one son, Arthur Wellesley Hall, born Aug. 3, 1878 who married Inez Bunker.
Col. Hall was President of the New Hampshire Historical Society and the Northam Colonists Historical Society where he delivered many papers. He donated the Soldier’s Monument that stands in front of the Public Library to the City of Dover. He was Trustee of the estate of Annie Woodman and was instrumental in the establishment of the Woodman Institute and served as a trustee of that organization until his death. He was a director of the Strafford National Bank from 1897 to 1919.
Sophia Dodge Hall died Dec. 1, 1918. Col. Daniel Hall died Jan. 3, 1920.
Photograph from Dover Public Library archives, text from Marston, Robert, Dover, NH: People, Businesses and Organizations: 1850 to 1950. Dover, NH, 2004.