welcome.
Since 1809, the Andover Bookstore has found a home on Main Street in Andover, Massachusetts. Enter the charming 1850s English tudor the store currently resides in and give yourself over to the ambiance: the exposed wood beams, the cherished smell of ink and paper, and a carefully curated selection of books filling shelves and tabletops in this admittedly small but no less fantastical bookstore.
Collect a stamp or a bookmark when you visit as a keepsake, take pictures, and buy a book, greeting cards, or local artists’ designs to support the country’s oldest independent bookstore!
Our History
The Andover Bookstore originally operated on the grounds of the Andover Theological Seminary, a graduate school founded in 1807, which shared campus space with Phillips Academy. The bookstore was run alongside the historic Andover Press, which printed books, maps, and newspapers such as the Journal of Humanity and the Andover Townsman, until the printing press was discountinued in the 1960s. While the Andover Bookstore has moved locations a number of times these past 217 years, it’s the people who keep the Andover Bookstore alive and well, customers and staff alike.
1809 to 1866. The campus of Andover Theological Seminary
1866 to 1907. 37 Main Street
1907 to 1963. Andover Press at 60 Main Street
1963 to 2018. Olde Andover Village at 89R Main Street
2018 to present. Andover Bookstore’s current location at 74 Main Street
In the News...
Meet Our Staff
Joanna (she/her)
Favorite genres: Fantasy, mystery/thriller, and contemporary fiction
Joanna is our store manager and is a dedicated reader. Books are a safe and inspiring space for her. She resisted learning to read as a kid, but now you have to call her name more than once to get her attention when she is reading.
Karen (she/her)
Favorite genres: Contemporary and historical fiction
Karen has been a part of the Andover Bookstore for more than 30 years. She’s an artist (find her watercolors in the store!) and is our traditional introducer for author events.
Caroline (she/her)
Favorite genres: Historical and speculative fiction
Caroline retired from being a fifth grade teacher and quickly joined the Andover Bookstore team. If you notice the store has been rearranged from one week to the next, know it was likely Caroline, whose mind is always churning with ideas.
Chris (he/him)
Favorite genres: Kids’ books and U.S. history
Chris works full-time outside of the bookstore as a teacher, but has been a cherished part of the shop’s staff since he was a teenager. Whether you need a recommendation for the kids in your life or the person you know who only ever reads history, Chris is your guy.
Beth (she/her)
Favorite genres: Literary and historical fiction
Beth is a busy grandmother who adds a book a week to her endless TBR. When she is not reading or grandchild-wrangling, she is dreaming of her next trip abroad.
Heather (she/her)
Favorite genres: Sci-fi, fantasy, and young adult
Heather is a literature enthusiast who reads across all genres and all ages. She runs her own knitting and yarn shop, Needle + Purl, works full-time in communications, parents a young reader, and somehow manages to find time to pick up the occasional shift at the bookstore.
Susan (she/her)
Favorite genres: Sci-fi and young adult
Susan graduated from Emerson with a degree in publishing and creative writing, and is currently pursuing an MFA in Creative Writing at UMass. When she isn’t writing, teaching, or doing coursework, we wrangle her back to Andover to care for our beautiful bookstore.
Abby (she/her)
Favorite genres: Literary fiction and memoir
Abby’s been both obsessed with books and chronically online for as long as she can remember. She works as a communications leader with over a decade of experience across non-profits, healthcare, and everything bookish, and slots in time to work on our social media.
The Hugo Family
John Hugo is the owner of the Andover Bookstore, taking over after his father, the late Bob Hugo, passed away in 2016. Bob Hugo purchsed the Andover Bookstore in 1992 and continually ran a number of bookstores in the North Shore before COVID unfortunately led to the closing of all but one: the country’s oldest independent bookstore, the Andover Bookstore.