Andover, geographically one of the largest townships in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, has a long and illustrious history. Founded more than 350 years ago, Andover has played a part in several critical events in American history, including the French and Indian wars, the witchcraft hysteria of the 1690s, the American Revolution, the abolitionist movement, the Civil War, and the Industrial Revolution. It is the birthplace of the song "America," written by Samuel Francis Smith. It has been the home of such notables as Anne Bradstreet, the first poet in the New World; Salem Poor, former slave and hero of the Battle of Bunker Hill; Samuel Osgood, the first postmaster general of the United States; and Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Tom's Cabin. It is home to the Andover Village Improvement Society, the second-oldest land conservation group in America. Pres. Franklin Pierce called Andover his summer home, and countless leaders of business and government resided in Andover while students at Phillips Andover Academy, one of the most prestigious private academies in the country.

A groundbreaking study in colonial history, this book gives a remarkably detailed picture of life in an early American community. It focuses on three basic and interrelated subjects largely neglected by historians—population, land, and the family—as they affected the lives of four successive generations. Applying demographic methods to historical research, Professor Greven presents new and unexpected evidence about the most basic aspects of family life in colonial America, and shows how these characteristics changed in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

This local history provides a detailed account of the development of Andover, New Hampshire, from its founding in the mid-18th century through the early 20th century. Emery and Eastman examine the town's economic, social, and political trends, as well as its notable residents and landmarks. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

When Samuel F. Smith wrote the lyrics to "America" in 1832, he said he was inspired by Andover's beauty, which is reflected in his second stanza: "I love thy rocks and rills, Thy woods and templed hills." Conservationists such as Alice Buck and Harold Rafton have kept Andover beautiful, and innumerable others made Andover a unique and extraordinary town. From Martha Carrier, defying her accusers to the moment of execution, to all the townspeople who fought in our nation's wars, Andoverians have never lacked for courage. Former slaves such as Salem Poor, a hero of Bunker Hill, made many contributions. Teachers such as the Stack sisters and Ted Boudreau kept Andover's standards high. Philanthropists like Sarah Abbot, Benjamin Punchard, and Yvon Cormier contributed to Andover's youth. Literary talent such as Harriet Beecher Stowe and Mary McGarry Morris make life poignant and interesting. Jay Leno keeps America amused. Businesspeople like Samuel Phillips Jr. and William Wood created wealth and jobs, and smaller businesses through the years added to local lore and traditions. These pages are filled with the stories of people who created the admirable, complex tapestry that is Andover.

In 1859 Reverend George Mooar, Pastor, published the last South Church history book. He saw the need to organize the records of South Church, which were scattered in various homes and areas of the Church. Today, I am happy to report that our record keeping is much better organized. This year, 2011, South Church in Andover, Massachusetts, United Church of Christ, is celebrating its 300th Anniversary. This is an important reason to update and document our history for this celebration and also for the future generations to come.

Historical Andover--which includes North Andover and Lawrence--became famous as a hot center of pre-Civil War antislavery activism. Why then was a 100-year-old Andover woman officially counted as a "slave" in the 1830 federal census for Massachusetts, a "free" state that had abolished slavery? And who was Rosanna Coburn, still remembered as the "last slave" born in Andover? Persistence of Memories of Slavery and Emancipation in Historical Andover brings forward indispensable research discoveries about fascinating people of many ancestries and heritages, connected together and integral to New England histories, artifacts, cultural traditions, and historic places. Their ordinary and extraordinary lives in historical Andover and surrounding localities are remembered today, some even internationally. This study's essential findings, informative endnotes, and a bibliography of incisive sources deepen views of the persistent echoes of enslavement, emancipation, and postemancipation in Atlantic World and global perspective.

A powerful portrait of the lives of four boarding school graduates who died too young, John F. Kennedy, Jr. among them, by their fellow Andover classmate, New York Times bestselling author William D. Cohan. In his masterful pieces for Vanity Fair and in his bestselling books, William D. Cohan has proven to be one of the most meticulous and intrepid journalists covering the world of Wall Street and high finance. In his utterly original new book, Four Friends, he brings all of his brilliant reportorial skills to a subject much closer to home: four friends of his who died young. All four attended Andover, the most elite of American boarding schools, before spinning out into very different orbits. Indelibly, using copious interviews from wives, girlfriends, colleagues, and friends, Cohan brings these men to life on the page. Jack Berman, the child of impoverished Holocaust survivors, uses his unlikely Andover pedigree to achieve the American dream, only to be cut down in an unimaginable act of violence. Will Daniel, Harry Truman’s grandson and the son of the managing editor of The New York Times, does everything possible to escape the burdens of a family legacy he’s ultimately trapped by. Harry Bull builds the life of a careful, successful Chicago lawyer and heir to his family’s fortune...before taking an inexplicable and devastating risk on a beautiful summer day. And the life and death of John F. Kennedy, Jr.—a story we think we know—is told here with surprising new details that cast it in an entirely different light. Four Friends is an immersive, wide-ranging, tragic, and ultimately inspiring account of promising lives cut short, written with compassion, honesty, and insight. It not only captures the fragility of life but also its poignant, magisterial, and pivotal moments.