I’m realizing now, months later, that I never fully explained why we decided not to build our log home in Dover, TN.
So here’s an update…
In our desire to find lake property in Tennessee, Dover was the very first place we visited.
We were incredibly hopeful and agreeable to the options that we were finding in Dover, TN.
And for some reason, there for awhile, we were putting all of our eggs in this one basket. Mostly just because we didn’t really want to explore other lakes. (I guess we were being lazy home shoppers or prospective land owners.)
So while we started with the Kentucky Lake/Lake Barkley area… we concentrated our search mostly in the Dover area itself because that’s where the most affordable (and nicest) properties were located. They were all located directly on the water, too.
But with the lakes being so close to the Kentucky border, we had to be careful or we were likely to wind up in Kentucky — which would mean a state income tax. And that’s something we weren’t at all interested in.
What Dover, Tennessee Is Like
Overall, I’d say Stewart County (Dover, TN to be specific) is a quaint, tiny little town that’s nice to visit, but I’m not sure I’d want to live there.
There’s really not much to do, aside from chat with your neighbors — or go boating — around those parts.
The only catch with building a home on or near the water around Lake Barkley is… most of the property that’s for sale isn’t dockable. Which seems a shame, since you have so much waterfront property right out your back door. Most waterfront lots associated with Lake Barkley are managed by the Army Corps of Engineers, so you need their permission to so much as chop down a small tree, build steps, or even park your boat on the water.
The good thing about the Lake Barkley area: The people.
We met neighbor after neighbor, and each was welcoming and eager to show us their home for sale, or their neighbor’s home for sale, or tell us about a home they knew was for sale. Talk about hospitable! Then there was the Army Corps of Engineers guy who went completely out of his way to tell us about some other properties he thought we might like. He was like a mini-Realtor to us!
The bad thing about the Lake Barkley area: The people.
I mean this from the aspect that everyone knows your business. Other than that, the people themselves are fine.
Without a doubt, the one thing that stuck in my mind the most about Dover, TN is the fact that nearly everyone we talked to — who was in some position of authority — knew very detailed information about so many people who lived in that town.
I guess that’s what you get from living in a small community… not just Dover, TN.
This is Dover…
While we were in town… we tried to visit with all of the “key” people in the town of Dover, TN. In the event that we actually moved there, we wanted to know all there was to know about the people… the services available… and all that there is to see & do in Stewart County!
A few more pictures of random things seen in and around Dover in Stewart County, Tennessee:
Moving On
For whatever reason, we decided to move on.
And boy, are we glad we did! Because we ended up with a choice piece of property on Dale Hollow Lake near Cookeville, Tennessee.
…and we couldn’t be happier.
More Photos Of Dover, TN Lakes
We’ve gone through the entire process of designing and planning every single detail of our dream log home! We have the blueprints… and the land… and the contractor… and the goal for our log cabin home to be our retirement home. Before you build (or buy) a log home, I have a slew of helpful tips for you — to plan, design, build, decorate, and maintain your very own rustic modern log home. When I’m not fine-tuning the log home of my dreams, you’ll find me at the corner of Good News & Fun Times as publisher of The Fun Times Guide (32 fun & helpful websites). To date, I’ve written nearly 300 articles for current and future log home owners on this site! Many of them have over 50K shares.
