Turtledove
Register
Advertisement
Jerry Dover
Fictional Character
Southern Victory
POD: September 10, 1862
Appearance(s): The Center Cannot Hold
through
In at the Death
Type of Appearance: Direct (POV TG and IatD)
Nationality: Confederate States
Date of Birth: Late c. 1901
Occupation: Business manager
Spouse: Sally
Children: Jethro
Military Branch: Confederate States Army
(Great War, Second Great War)

Jerry Dover was the general manager of the very prestigious Huntsman's Lodge restaurant in Augusta, Georgia, for many years. He was Xerxes' boss, and often shielded the black man and other hard workers from Freedom Party actions such as curfews and "cleanouts." Dover had fought in the trenches of the Great War, and was recalled into Army service in the autumn of 1942, a year after the Second Great War began. From 1942 until 1944, he served in the Quartermaster Corps.

Dover approached the Corps with a relentless driving willpower rarely seen in that unit. He had no patience for obstructionists on his own side and entered into a number of conflicts with generals who outranked him. Not being a career officer, Dover cared little for the fortunes of his military tenure and had no ingrained respect for the chain of command.

Following the capture of Colonel Travis W. W. Oliphant in 1943, Major Dover was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and assumed Oliphant's responsibilities. Under his command, distribution of Confederate war materiel in Kentucky and Tennessee became drastically more efficient, so much so that US General Irving Morrell considered recommending that Dover be specifically targeted by US assassination teams.

While outside of Chattanooga, Dover received a letter from Melanie Leigh, a former mistress who had been blackmailing him for some time. The letter made him suspicious that Leigh was a spy, and he turned it over to Major Claude Nevers in Confederate Intelligence. Leigh was indeed a spy, and escaped the Confederate dragnet Nevers mobilized against her.

Though loyal to the Confederacy, Dover could barely tolerate Jake Featherston, had no use at all for the Freedom Party, and was appalled by the Population Reduction. Nonetheless, like many moderate Confederates, Dover realized in 1943 and 1944 that Featherston was the last, best hope the CS had to win the war.

By 1944, Dover found himself in a series of retreats, constantly falling back from the advancing U.S. forces until he was captured near Albertville, Alabama. His staff-sergeant, Pete, was killed as they attempted to retreat.

Dover was shipped to Camp Liberty!, located outside Indianapolis. After the peace treaty, Dover became one of the first CSA officers released from prison, when Featherston's killer Cassius Madison informed the US high command that Dover had saved the young man from a cleanout one night. Dover returned to Augusta to manage the Huntsman's Lodge once more.

See also Inconsistencies (Southern Victory)

Advertisement