Then and now

It was a different time. Pouches of tobacco complete with rolling papers could be purchased for only a matter of pennies. A competitive workman's wage was 15 cents per hour. It was during this period that Andover was born. One hundred years ago, on March 25, 1904, Andover Borough was established from land that once belonged to Andover Township. Only 1.4 square miles in size, the newly formed municipality had a budget of less than $1,000. Since then, the borough has grown in both population and size. On Saturday Sept. 25, a parade will be held to celebrate the 100th anniversary of municipality. The procession will begin at noon at the heart of Andover near the intersection of Route 206 and Limcrest Road, and will end at Borough Memorial Park. The celebration, which is being organized by the municipality and the Andover Historical Society, will include family activities and a display of artifacts from the borough's past. Attending the event, will be former Andover mayor Bill Thomas. Thomas, has lived in Andover nearly all of his life. Moving to Andover when he was two years old, he has been a part of the Andover community for the past 72 years. The former mayor can still recall when all of the borough's children attended a three-room school house. "Now, the schools have joined with Andover Township and Newton High School," said Thomas. "But we still have a small community, that's the main thing." Vice president of the Andover historical society Jane Cole is currently researching township history that she hopes to make part of the celebrations. She is encouraging older residents of the borough to bring historical pieces with them to the event, so that they can be shared with the communit