West Parish Center District, Andover

The West Parish Center District encompasses the social and religious center of the part of Andover, Massachusetts, that is located west of the Shawsheen River. It is mostly spread along Lowell Street on either side of a major intersection with four other roads: Shawsheen Road, Reservation Road, Beacon Street, and High Plain Road. The centerpiece of the district is the 1826 West Parish Church, which is the oldest church standing in Andover. It is an elegant Federal style granite structure topped with a wooden steeple, added in 1863. The roof is made of Spanish tile, which was probably part of changes made around 1908. Opposite the church on the south side of the common is the West Parish Cemetery, which began as a small burying ground in the 1790s, and was substantially enlarged and restyled in the early 1900s. ()