Archive

One collection that we’ve come across as part of our retroconversion project is this box of documents relating to Victoria Woodhull Martin, the first woman to run for US President in 1872, and Lady of the Manor of Bredon’s Norton, 1901-1927. Who was Woodhull Martin?   Described as “vastly avant garde”, Victoria Woodhull Martin was...

An exhibition which summarised some of the records catalogued as part of the New Burdens Project was displayed until 31st March 2026. Whilst this has now passed, you can view images from the exhibition below. Worcestershire Archive and Archaeology Service secured £73000 in 2022 from The National Archives’ (TNA) New Burdens fund to catalogue and improve...

From English country houses to dramatic naval battles and foreign lands, we continue our look at the Sandys family’s extraordinary art collection. Many of the pictures at Ombersley came to the Court through Letitia Baroness Sandys, while others were bought directly from artists or collected abroad. From views of Chatsworth House to Spanish bullfighting scenes...

From Old Master paintings to prints, ceramics and furniture, the Sandys family’s art collection tells a story of politics, personal taste and ancestry. For centuries, the Sandys family collected art, turning Ombersley Court into something as much like a gallery as a home. Whilst a number were commissioned or purchased directly from artists, others were...

From the Sandys Archive comes a series of letters from an officer fighting in the Peninsular War. As a young cavalry officer in the Duke of Wellington’s army, Arthur Moyses William Hill bore witness to some of the most pivotal moments of the Napoleonic Wars. From early 1813 to the aftermath of the Battle of...

Amongst the Magistrate Court records held with us on behalf of Worcestershire County Council as part of The Public Records Act are Bankruptcy records from the early 20th century. Whilst they detail the financial situation of individuals and businesses, individual case files which are outside the 100-year closure period can provide insight into the circumstances...

A recent deposit of material with connections to the Binyon and Spriggs family of Henwick Grove, Worcester has revealed a remarkable set of letters from well-known scientists, government officials and artists of the 19th century, including Charles Darwin (and with some irony, his most celebrated opponent and creator of the London Natural History Museum, Sir....

The second set of journals written by Ladies Charlotte and Mary Hill begin in the Autumn of 1815. They follow a tour of France where their brother ‘Atty’ is serving as Aide de Camp to the Duke of Wellington. Jointly written they continue to record the sisters’ daily routine, weekly lessons and vibrant social life....

The remarkable journals of two sisters offer a glimpse into Regency life and throw light on their place in the Sandys story. Ladies Charlotte and Mary Hill were the daughters of Mary Sandys, heiress of Ombersley Court in Worcestershire, and her husband Arthur Hill. Born in 1794 and 1796, the sisters were the third and...

What historic and modern Coroner’s records do we hold? Worcestershire Archives, as parent body and approved Place of Deposit on behalf of WCC holds historic and modern Coroners’ records from the 19th – 21st century. These include records known as ‘Coroners’ Cravings’ which record Inquests in the late 19th century, through to Coroner’s Daily Record,...