Andover dates to 1857, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 28% of U.S. towns · #181 of 273 in Minnesota. What drives it
Most of Andover was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1994. Its Register listing is the Porter Kelsey House. Below: maps from 1902 on and the census since 1860.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1897.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Andover’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Andover is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns, #181 of 273 in Minnesota. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Andover’s overall grade.
Minnesota towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Minnesota town has 2.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Andover’s 0.3 sits near the middle of its state (48% of Minnesota towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1857.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share (±1.1 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Andover’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1860 after an Anoka, Minnesota speech by U.S. Representative Galusha Aaron Grow from Pennsylvania who was an abolitionist and a major figure in the Homestead Act, the town name was changed to Grow Township.
Ham Lake Township split from Andover, known as Grow Township at the time, in 1871.
Once a stop on the Great Northern Railway, Andover was established as a city in 1976.
In 1857, according to Wikidata. Andover’s post office opened in 1897, and the census of 1860 counted 330 people here.
How does Andover rank for history?
Andover is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns, #181 of 273 in Minnesota. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Andover?
One place: the Porter Kelsey House (listed 1979).
How old are the homes in Andover?
2% of Andover’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.1 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1994.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (1), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
2023