Archive

The word wigs comes from “periwigs” which was the name of the particular long, curly wigs that became popular after Charles II was returned to the throne in 1660. They were used to simulate real hair and primarily used for adornment. However at the time, head lice were everywhere, and nitpicking was painful and time-consuming. Wigs stopped lice infesting...

The earliest-known black person in Worcestershire whose name we know is believed to be Henry Antonie Jetto. The first reference to him is in a parish register dating back to the late 16th century. The discovery was made by his 11x great-grandson whilst tracing his family history at the Worcestershire History Centre before we moved...

Last year Explore Your Archive week saw us feature some extraordinary people with links to Worcestershire. As part of this we held an exhibition of some of the archives and held a successful drop in day featuring talks about the individuals we featured.   During the course of the day it was wonderful to meet some of...

UPDATE 20/11/2016: Unfortunately the weather forecast is absolutely horrendous for tomorrow, so we’ve decided to postpone the site tours. The site is very exposed and ground conditions are likely to be treacherous. Besides being unsafe, there’s not going to be much to see (unless you’re particularly keen on puddles) until the rain passes. We’ll re-arrange...

Worcestershire Archive Service is in the process of cataloguing a collection of four volumes that were deposited with us by Homery Folkes, an architect, local historian and noted antiquarian. These volumes contain newspaper cuttings, postcards, photographs and drawings reproducing architectural details and images from nature.  Obviously the work of someone very interested in architecture –...

The Quarter Sessions are a great source of stories. They contain all sorts of crimes and disputes from across the county, which the Justices of the Peace had to adjudicate on with the help of juries. Over the years volunteers have indexed these which help people to search through for particular people and places, and...

On 21st September we announced some changes that will be taking place on Level 2 at The Hive.  We are now pleased to confirm that these changes will be taking place over the weekend of 29th and 30th October.   Because of the nature of the work it will be necessary to close the area so...

The 29th September marks the Feast of St Michael and All Angels, often shortened to Michaelmas. In the liturgical year of the Church it celebrates the Archangel. It is a popular dedication to parish churches, including Salwarpe, Stoke Prior, Cropthorne, Great Comberton, Tenbury and in Worcester the church which stood next to the Cathedral. St...

Our popular Archaeology Day School will be held this year on Saturday 19th November at the University of Worcester. Once again we will have a range of talks on archaeological topics from both our staff and guests. Talks will include Fascinating Finds Portable Antiquities Scheme in Worcestershire Roman & Saxon Kempsey in two recent digs...

Statue of Queen Victoria in 1950 Image taken from the Worcestershire Photographic Survey, register no. 456 Are you enjoying the ITV series Victoria? Queen Victoria’s long reign was celebrated across the country in many ways including statues in many towns and cities. In Worcester there is a statue of Queen Victoria outside Shire Hall (now...