"[5] The remains of the Andrews Mound[6] survived until 1975, when the land owner bulldozed the structure after it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

The area was originally called Jamesville, and then the Whitaker Settlement, in honor of settler James Whittaker.

The two-story log cabin built by Thomas Tatham is the oldest surviving structure in the county.

In the late 1880s, Col. Alexander Boyd Andrews, second vice president of the Richmond and Danville Railroad, bought 50 acres in the area to build a commissary for the railway.

The Franklin Pierce Cover House, First Baptist Church, and Walker's Inn are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

[10] On October 27, 1906, the dedication of the Andrews Public School occurred, and its first classes began in August 1907 in the Masonic Lodge.

Both were born and raised in Andrews, attended flight school at Cherry Point, North Carolina, and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps as pilots during World War II.

[9] The town’s first hospital was located downtown on the corner of Locust and Main Streets, founded by Dr. Van Gorder.

Citing uncollected payments, District Memorial declared bankruptcy in 2000, closed in June 2003, and was demolished in late 2008/early 2009.

[20][21] Today the town is served by Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital 12 miles (19 km) southwest in Peachtree.

The Andrews nonprofit hires mentally and physically disabled adults to manufacture military, medical, and commercial goods.

[33] In late 2024, Andrews' leaders unanimously repealed a law that banned weapons on town property, including the pool, library, and police department.

[citation needed] According to the United States Census Bureau, Andrews has a total area of 1.6 square miles (4.2 km2), all land.

Within the township are the towns of Marble in the west, Andrews at the center, and Topton in the far east at the Macon and Graham county lines.

[citation needed] As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,667 people, 714 households, and 400 families residing in the town.

[43][44] Andrews was served by railroad from 1891 until the 1980s when Norfolk Southern decided to close the Murphy Branch west of Sylva, North Carolina, because of declining freight traffic.

The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad operated passenger excursions from Dillsboro, North Carolina to Andrews from 1988 until 2010.

[51] In 2020, the police chief resigned after the mayor ordered him to establish checkpoints and harass visitors to prevent COVID-19 from entering Andrews.

[53] That same year the city's entire police force was suspended after officers reportedly moved cameras facing locations like the station's evidence room.

[55] In June 2023, a female officer who allegedly stalked a 16-year-old Andrews High School student she dated was ordered to stay away from the girl.

[56] In September 2023, the police chief was suspended after he was charged with obtaining property under false pretenses and obstruction of justice.

The old rock gym built in 1934 east of the school closed in May 1999 due to safety concerns and was demolished that December.

[62] After the merger of Andrews and Murphy's districts in 1969, Cherokee County's superintendent was John Jordan.

[63] After the town's newspaper closed, Mayor James Reid began offering a quarterly e-newsletter.