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Andover, Massachusetts

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Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was incorporated in 1646 and as of the 2000 census population was 31,247. It is part of the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts-New Hampshire metropolitan statistical area.

Part of the town comprises the census-designated place of Andover.

History

Establishment and incorporation

In 1634, the Great and General Court of Massachusetts set aside a portion of land in what is now Essex County for an inland plantation, including parts of what is now Andover, North Andover and South Lawrence. In order to encourage settlement, early colonists were offered three years' immunity from taxes, levies and services (except military service). The first permanent settlement in the Andover area was established in 1641 by John Woodbridge and a group of settlers from Newbury and Ipswich.

Shortly after they arrived, they purchased a piece of land from the local Pennacook tribal chief Cutshamache for the price of "six pounds of currency and a coat" and on the condition that Roger, a local Pennacook man, would still be allowed to plant his corn and take alewives from a local water source. Roger's Brook, a small stream which cuts through the eastern part of town, is named in his honor. In May of 1646 the settlement was incorporated as a town and was named Andover. This name was likely chosen in honor of the town of Andover in England, which was near the original home of some of the first residents. The first recorded town meeting was held in 1656 in the home of settler John Osgood.

The old burying ground in what is now North Andover marks the center of the early town. Contrary to popular belief, the towns split due to the location of the Old North Church, also located in what is now North Andover. So technically, what is now Andover was not incorporated as a township until many years after 1646. The villagers from the southwestern part of the town were tired of walking all the way to the extreme north of what was then Andover, and decided to build their own church central to what is now Andover. Logically you would think the northern part of the town would keep the name Andover, due to their higher stake of villagers, but fights and quibbles throughout the church and town meetings ultimately led to the elder part of town being known as what is now North Andover. Early on the general populous was concentrated together around the Old Center (North Andover) for protection from feared Indian attacks, but the Indians were fairly peaceful until the outbreak of King Philip's War in 1675. King Philip was an Indian who organized a revolt against the white settlers throughout most of New England. Six Indian raids occurred between 1676 and 1698 until ever-increasing numbers of white settlers established control of the land.

Witchcraft

In 1692, a resident of Salem Village asked for help for his wife from several girls in the village who were said to have the power to detect and cure disease. After visiting her, the girls claimed that several people in Andover had bewitched her. During the course of the frenzy that swept Salem Village and surrounding communities, more than 40 Andover citizens, mostly women, were eventually accused of being in league with Satan. About a quarter of them were condemned to death, and as many as three were executed. Many of the rest were imprisoned for months.

The two parishes and the division of the town

By 1705, Andover's population had begun to move southward and the idea of a new meeting house in the south end of town was proposed. This was strongly opposed by the people living near the original meeting house in the north, but the dispute was finally settled in 1709 when the Great and General Court divided Andover into two parishes, North and South. Despite this split, the town remained politically one unit.

For many years Andover was geographically one of the largest towns in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; in 1826 a third parish was established and West Parish Church was constructed on Reservation Road. In 1854, a measure was passed to divide the town into two separate political units according to the old parish boundaries. The name Andover was assumed by the more populous and wealthy West and South parishes, while the name North Andover was given to the North Parish.

Andover in the Revolutionary War

Records show that on the morning of April 19 1775, approximately 350 Andover men marched toward Lexington. Although they did not arrive in time for the battle that day, they did go on to participate in the battle of Bunker Hill two months later and fought in subsequent skirmishes with the Redcoats during the war.

Among the Andover men who were representatives to the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention were Col. Samuel Osgood, Zebadiah Abbot, John Farnum and Samuel Phillips, Jr. Phillips - who would later go on to found Phillips Academy - was later appointed by John Adams to help draft the Massachusetts state constitution.

Death of President-elect Franklin Pierce's son

On January 6 1853, Benjamin "Bennie" Pierce, (1841–1853) the 11- or 12-year-old son of President-elect Franklin Pierce, was killed in a train accident in town. The Boston & Maine noon express, traveling from Boston to Lawrence, was moving at 40 miles per hour when an axle broke. The only coach, in which Franklin Pierce was also riding, went down an embankment and broke in two. (The baggage car and locomotive had remained on the track.) Pierce's son was the only one killed, but it was initially reported that Pierce was also a fatality. He was only badly bruised. Jane Pierce, the child's mother, was also on the train. The Pierces had previously lost two other children. The death is said to have cast a pall on the couple, especially Jane, who entertained hardly at all in the White House and spent much of her time writing letters to her dead children. She died, still grief-stricken, in 1863.

Civil War

The anti-slavery movement had many supporters in Andover long before the American Civil War began. William Jenkins - an ardent abolitionist and friend of William Lloyd Garrison - and several others provided stops on the Underground Railway for runaway slaves. It should be noted that Harriet Beecher Stowe, ardent participant in the Underground Railroad, was a long time resident who wrote the famous book Uncle Tom's Cabin. Her home, now known as Stowe House is now owned by Phillips Academy Andover. Her body is buried in Phillips Academy's cemetery. When the Confederate Army shelled Fort Sumter in 1861, a company of 79 volunteers formed. By the time the war ended in 1865, 600 Andover men had served in the Union Army.

Shawsheen Village

In 1919, the American Woolen Company announced plans to build a million dollar mill in the already-existing mill community of Frye Village and rename the region "Shawsheen." The village was completely rebuilt as a "model industrial community" and became the site of the company's headquarters. The mill began operating in 1922 and within two years the village contained more than 200 houses, several community buildings, a few tennis courts, a swimming area, a bowling green, an athletic field and a golf course. The employees rented their homes from the company; the brick structures were reserved for upper management and the wooden buildings for those of lesser position. This industrial utopia, however, was short-lived - by the early 1940s almost all of the houses and administration buildings were in private hands. The mills became a victim of changing technology as synthetic fibers became more popular than wool. The American Woolen Company closed its mills in 1953, and the buildings today house a variety of businesses, homes, and apartments. The village left its mark nationally, however, when its soccer team, the Shawsheen Indians won the national soccer championship in 1925.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 32.1 square miles (83.2 km²), of which, 31.0 square miles (80.3 km²) of it is land and 1.1 square miles (2.9 km²) of it (3.49%) is water. Significant water areas include the Shawsheen River and Haggetts Pond, located in west Andover, which serves as the town's reservoir. Haggetts Pond was originally set apart from other waters, but since the late 1990s has had waters added from the nearby Merrimack River to supplement the growing needs of the town.

Andover borders the following cities and towns: Lawrence, North Andover, North Reading, Wilmington, Tewksbury, Dracut and Methuen. Methuen and Dracut are opposite the Merrimack River from Andover, and are not accessible directly from Andover except by Interstate 93, which connects Andover with Methuen.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 31,247 people, 11,305 households, and 8,490 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,007.8 people per square mile (389.1/km²). There were 11,590 housing units at an average density of 144.3 persons/km² (373.8 persons/sq mi). The racial makeup of the town was 91.60% White, 0.75% African American, 0.06% Native American, 5.73% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.84% from other races, and 0.99% from two or more races. 1.81% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 11,305 households out of which 40.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.6% were married couples living together, 7.5% have a woman whose husband does not live with her, and 24.9% were non-families. 21.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.24.

In the town the population was spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 92.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $87,683, and the median income for a family was $104,820. Males had a median income of $78,291 versus $44,292 for females. The per capita income for the town was $41,133. 3.9% of the population and 2.5% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 3.7% are under the age of 18 and 6.8% are 65 or older.

Education

Public schools

Andover has a public school system.

Schools

  • Elementary schools (K-5)- Shawsheen, Bancroft, West Elementary, South, Sanborn, High Plain
  • Middle Schools (6-8)- Doherty, West Middle, Wood Hill
  • High Schools (9-12)- Andover High School

Private schools

Higher Education

Transportation

Andover is an important location for businesses due to its proximity to several major roads in Massachusetts, including I-93, I-95, and I-495. Andover is also on the Haverhill-Boston Commuter Rail Line. Also by going to Woburn or Haverhill on the Commuter Line you can connect to the Amtrak Train to Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Portland, Maine.

Points of interest

Notable residents

See also: List of notable Phillips Academy alumni

See also

References

Sources

External links



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