Archive

Today is the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo and we’ve been looking for documents and sources relating to the famous battle within our collections here at Worcestershire Archives. Here is the story as it was told in the Worcester Herald of 24 June 1815. In the days before TV and radio this was...

If you were following our blog posts in November you will remember our series about Dandy Row which we featured as part of the Explore Your Archive campaign. We began to research the history of this small terrace of houses after finding a photo in the archives which dated back to about 1900 and subsequently...

After Thomas Boyce died in 1920, Dandy Row, Pleasant Row and three houses in Chestnut Street were left to his son Rowland. In July 1936 it was proposed that the city council purchase Dandy Row, Pleasant Row and the land between from Rowland O’Hara Boyce for the purposes of widening Severn Street. Demolition orders had...

At No. 2 Dandy Row, lived Nathaniel Wale and his wife Ellen. Nathaniel married Ellen Morgan in 1870 and the newlyweds moved into their home in Severn Street where in early 1871 their first child Ellen Maria was born. Sadly, their baby daughter died the following year, but they had five further children: Anne Marie...

The Webb Family who lived at no 4 were one of the many fishing families that lived in the area. Isaac Webb baptised in 1790 was the founder of this fishing dynasty. He was an apprentice fisherman. He completed his apprenticeship and received his freedom of the City in 1812. He married and had 11...

John Baylis was born around 1868. His father Samuel Baylis is also a previous resident of Dandy Row. John and his wife Susan (who died in 1908) had five children, Sidney, Gertrude, Edith, Arthur and Bertram. For many years John worked at Worcester Porcelain as a china printer, although in some sources he has also...

Fanny Martin and her only child Henry William came to live at Dandy Row after her husband William died in 1891. Henry William Martin was born in 1887, and we have found that he attended St Peter’s School.  Worcestershire Archive and Archaeology Service, ref: b899:749, BA9294/49(iii) Henry Martin died, aged 30, on 15th September 1917...

   This piece of land was purchased in 1792 from a Mrs Ann Gamidges widow, by Mr Fincher and the row was built soon after. In early years of the 19th century the top half of Frog Lane that was behind the city wall became High Timber Hill Street. The rest of the lane remained...

While sorting through a small collection I came across a photograph taken from Worcester Cathedral looking across the Worcester Porcelain works and surrounding area. It showed Worcester when the Bath Road took you to open Countryside. With thanks to Mr Gwillam for use of this photograph We were intrigued by the photograph and began trying...