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At this time of year, like many of us I’m sure, I look back and review the year. The best and the worst bits, the excitement and the woe, the good days and the times perhaps you’d rather forget. Whilst this year has been a good one for all sorts of reasons, the hardest event...

We have a wonderful collection which provides a beautiful insight into the working life of Queen Elizabeth II. Collected by Florence Bramford from Newington Green near Upton-upon-Severn who became a ladies’ maid to several ladies-in-waiting to the Queen, the Queen Mother and her sister Princess Margaret. Florence’s archive Florence’s paperwork is now held at the...

This October for Black History Month we thought we’d take a look at local slave trading connections, in Upton and Ripple. Research by University College London allows us to investigate those who were awarded compensation for the ownership of slaves in 1837 after the slave trade was abolished. In total, slave owners were paid £20 million for...

Modern hop pickers are the focus of a photo exhibition in The Hive’s atrium, so we thought we’d look how hops are represented within our collections. Hops have been an important crop in several parts of the county, such as the Teme Valley, since at least the 18th century, often alongside orchards. Evidence can be...

The Market Gardening Heritage Project has now officially ended, and we wanted to take a look back as well as saying a few thank yous. Many of you will have followed the progress either in person or through our social media over the past years. The project began as one strand of a larger project...

140 years ago The Worcestershire Exhibition took place at Shrub Hill, Worcester. Running from 15th July to 15th October 1882, The Worcester Exhibition in the empty Worcester Engine Works shed at Shrub Hill exhibited items loaned by people and businesses from throughout Worcestershire. On opening day bells were rung, flags were flown, and the streets were decorated...

As part of our #Archives75 series we look at St Helen's during it's time as our home, as well as looking back at the history of possibly the oldest church in the city.

Vicky, one of our our archivists, has been working on a project looking at medieval seals and shares what she has found and some of her favourites.

Since Friday 1st July our collection of Bishop’s Transcripts (BTs) have been online and searchable on the Ancestry Website. You can now search the 2.8 million names for baptism, marriages and burials. These records, which are duplicate copies of the parish registers, are kept here within the strongrooms of The Hive. The way that they...

We are pleased to be hosting a Worcestershire Heritage Day on Saturday 16th July, as part of The Hive at Ten events marking 10 years since The Hive opened. To celebrate this milestone, local heritage venues and organisations will be joining us between 10am and 4pm with displays and activities. There’ll be lots to see...