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This may be difficult for some to believe but there was a time when it wasn’t possible to take a photograph with a telephone. In the pre-digital, pre-film age of photography there were no postcard-sized sleek and shiny smartphones to point-and-shoot, instantly producing an image of that perfect sunset with the ‘click’ of an artificial...

This is the fifth in a series of blog posts celebrating the life and work of timber-frame building specialists F.W.B ‘Freddie’ and Mary Charles. Funded by Historic England, the ‘Charles Archive’ project aims to digitise and make more accessible the Charles Archive collection. In this piece we look at a rather unexpected report found in...

We’ve received a lot of support for the Elgar archives coming to The Hive and remaining in Worcestershire, and we are very grateful to everyone who has sent letters of support, signed the petition and helped in other ways. A few questions have been asked, and we thought it may be helpful to share some...

Worcester music hall star Vesta Tilley is the subject of the latest trail leaflet from Worcestershire World War 100. You can follow the trail to visit places in the city which have connections to Vesta’s childhood and professional life. This joins the existing Woodbine Willie Trail which has been very popular. Vesta Tilley was born...

We’ve been blown away by the support we’ve received since the news that Edward Elgar’s archive is being moved from the Elgar Birthplace Museum to the British Library and not to Worcestershire’s county archives here in The Hive as we had hoped. Thank you very much!   We want to update you on the latest...

A couple of our archaeologists have been down at the Hanbao/former Toby Tavern site, Sansome Street, Worcester, over the past couple of weeks. It’s attracted a lot of interest. Work is still in progress; here’s a brief summary of what we’ve found so far. This site is just outside the Foregate and in a medieval suburb...

Stolen ducks, theft of acorns and disputes between parishes are some of the fascinating stories contained with Quarter Sessions. This is the latest in our Exploring Archives series, on Wed 20 June, helping you to discover more about some of the historical sources and how they can help you. You may never have heard of Quarter...

You may have heard in the media the news that the Elgar Archive, currently at the Elgar Birthplace Museum, is to move to the British Library in London. We wanted to let you know what is happening and our role in this. Over the past two years the Elgar Foundation has been considering a new...

As Volunteers' Week draws to a close, here's an account of one of our young volunteer's work on our upcoming Ice Age exhibitions

Mammoths in Staffordshire? Yes! A mammoth bone was recently discovered along the River Tame in Staffordshire. Megafauna remains are incredibly important for understanding deep history and past landscapes, but they’re more common in the West Midlands than you’d think. Most archaeology occurs within the first metre or so below ground, except for traces of Ice...