Andover

Market town in Hampshire, England, 22 km/14 mi northwest of Winchester; population (2001) 38,000. It is situated on the River Anton, a tributary of the River Test, and is the trading and commercial centre of an extensive agricultural district, with paper milling, printing, and iron industries.

The town has been in continuous habitation since Saxon times and was granted its first charter in 1175 by King Henry II. Throughout its history it has been situated on important lines of communication; the ancient Harrow Way passed just north of the town, coaches on their way to Exeter stopped here, and during the railway age there were stations on north-south and east-west lines. A planning agreement signed in 1961 with London County Council has nearly doubled the town's population and brought many new firms to the industrial estates.

Andover Museum, converted in 1981, is based in Andover's old grammar school in the heart of the old town. It tells the story of the town from Saxon times to its rapid growth since the 1960s. The Museum of the Iron Age in Andover tells the story of Bury Hill(also known as Danebury), an Iron Age hill fort that lies 6 mi/10 km southwest of Andover. Archaeologist Barry Cunliffe and his team devoted 20 summers to digging this 2000-year-old settlement, making it one of the largest and best-known excavations in Britain.

Andover

Town in Essex County, northeast Massachusetts, USA; population (1998 est) 31,400. It is situated 40 km/25 mi northeast of Boston. Industries include some light manufacturing, biotech research, and electronics and weapons research and production. There are now many technology firms operating from Andover which include Hewlett Packard, Raytheon, Digital, and the Genetics Institute. Andover is home to Phillips Academy, popularly referred to as Andover School, one of the oldest (1778) US private boys' schools; it merged with the all-girls Abbott Academy in 1973. The Andover Theological Seminary, which was in the town from 1808-1908, is now part of Andover Newton Theological School, in nearby Newton.

The town was incorporated in 1646, and attractions include the Addison Gallery of American Art and the R S Peabody Museum of Archaeology.

Andover

Town in Anoka County, southeast Minnesota, USA; population (1990) 15,200. It is located 32 km/20 mi to the north of Minneapolis, and is a rapidly-growing outer-ring suburb of the Twin Cities.