This Project began in 2006, funded by lottery money in the form of the Local Heritage Initiative. There were two aims: 1. recording Historical Buildings in Kidderminster and 2. initiating an archaeological survey to search for a possible site of a Saxon Minster in St Mary's Churchyard.
Reporting on Historic Buildings
The main task of the project was to start recording the history of the built environment, and this was a partnership with the archaeologists of Worcestershire County Council. Historical reports on particular buildings or streets were produced by project members and placed on the Historical Environment Record (HER) held by the archaeologists.
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Printed copies of the report collection are held by the Museum of Carpet, the Worcestershire Archivesat the Hive, and are also in Kidderminster Library (where they are presently stored in the Ephemerasection).
Although HKP was wound up as a funded project in October 2008, the work of compiling building reports has continued. We hope that our activity will extend for some years to come.
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Our intention is to involve the public as much as possible. Our organisation is informal and consists of enthusiasts rather than experts. Anybody who has knowledge of a building of historical interest can write a report for the project. The reports are intended to be open to possible updating or revision from time to time.
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What qualifies a building to be of ‘historical’ interest? We are in no way elitist about this. So, for example, the working class terraced houses and streets are of great interest to us. Virtually everything before 1900 is worth recording and much that came afterwards. We are seeking to view the history of the town and its people through its buildings. It follows that this is not a project primarily about the architectural merit of buildings, but about their social history and the people who lived and worked in them.
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The INDEX compiled from the reports is deliberately comprehensive, particularly regarding personal names from deeds and other documents. This record is therefore likely to be of use to family historians. Those researching the history of their house may well find information in a report on a neighbouring house, even if no report refers specifically on their own residence.
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Click the BUTTON to visit the BUILDING REPORTS page
An Archaeological Survey of St Mary’s Churchyard
The funded project 2006-2008 included provision for a radar survey of the churchyard of our historic St Mary's church. This was the beginning of a search for evidence concerning the location of a Saxon monastery or minster church which gave the town the "minster" part of its name. To our delight the survey revealed evidence of a buried structure, which could not be identified from recent historical records.
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As a result of the initial survey an Archaeological dig was initiated and carried out in 2013.
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Click the BUTTON to read about the whole project.
Historical Walk Leaflets
In 2008 the Society's Historic Kidderminster Project published three walks round historic parts of Kidderminster. They have proved very popular. Three thousand copies of each leaflet were printed, but most have now been distributed by Kidderminster Library and especially by Bewdley Museum.
Click on the links here to download copies of the three leaflets. They are the East Walk around the Birmingham Road and Leswell area; the Puxton/Franche walk which marks the sites of many demolished buildings including Franche Hall, Puxton House and the original Three Crowns and Sugar Loaf pub; the South West walk which takes you from the town centre along the canal towards Stourport.
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An earlier Walk leaflet published in 2003 can be viewed and downloaded:
to view/print in A3 format Walk leaflet 2003
to view/print in A4 format Walk leaflet 2003