The Rotherwas Angel has landed!

We are delighted to put this fabulous piece of art on permanent display at Rotherwas where it will be a memorial to all the people who worked at ROF Rotherwas. Thank you to Hereford City Council. Hereford College of Arts, the Goodwin Family, QuickSkip, Rhys Griffith and the team at HARC, Oliver at Errand Studio architects and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. The Angel was officially unveiled by former ROF Rotherwas munitions worker Nancy Billings and the Mayor of Hereford Jacqui Carwardine.

Where is it? The sculpture is on the corner of Fir Tree Lane and Skylon View at Rotherwas, the road leading to the Shell Store. Postcode - HR2 6SR It’s a 5 minute walk from Herefordshire Archives and Records Centre and a 10 minute walk from The Munitions cafe at the Shell Store. There is free parking and toilets at both locations. what3words - ///brightly.competing.frostbite

Exploring Rotherwas Then and Now Launch

We are delighted to welcome community historians Clare Wichbold MBE and Angela Williams as the Project Manager and Researcher for our Exploring Rotherwas Then and Now project.

Thanks to funding from the government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund, they will be working with volunteers and the staff at Herefordshire’s Archives to create a database of information about the people who worked at ROF Rotherwas and their lives in the county.  The county archives holds the national munitions collection, the remaining paperwork of munitions workers.

“There’s a huge amount of interest in the munitions sites and the people who worked there,” said Angie Gibbs, the Chair of Rotherwas Together.  “We know how keen people are to explore the site on foot or by bike and to find out how their family and friends worked and lived. We’ll be holding regular search days, talks and social events to help people to have fun as well as discovering more about where they live.”  

If you’re keen to find out more about a relative or friend who worked at ROF Rotherwas or another munitions site, please email us at Rotherwas@hotmail.com or call into the Herefordshire Archive and Records Centre (HARC) at Rotherwas.

Factory Fashion Exhibition

Our Factory Fashion project has allowed us to step back in time and use an original pattern to show you how the women of Herefordshire and the borders made their overalls. The project was funded by Hereford City Council and we thank them for their ongoing support. Please come and see the exhibition. If you’d like to find out more, and arrange a talk for your club, community group, school, college or nursing home, please contact us at Rotherwas@hotmail.com

Government Recognition!

After years of campaigning, the UK Government is now providing official recognition of the work done by munitions workers during the second world war. This has taken years of hard work by the National Munitions Association, the former Rotherwas Munitions Group, BBC Hereford & Worcester and the veterans and their families. We went to Downing Street back in October 2017 to ask for this and, finally, it’s happened. You can now apply for a badge and commemorative letter for yourselves or on behalf of a friend or relative. They are also being awarded posthumously. Please apply here - Apply for a badge

Hereford's Canary Bridge is officially named to mark VJ Day

We’re so pleased to tell you that Hereford's greenway bridge has been officially named the Canary Bridge to mark the 75th anniversary of VJ Day. The Lord-Lieutenant of Herefordshire unveiled the new sign and paid tribute to the thousands of people who worked in the munitions factory at Rotherwas during both world wars. They were given the nickname 'canaries' as the chemicals they used turned their hair and skin yellow. Thousands of workers used a similar bridge from St James to Rotherwas to get to work. The Chairman of the Council, Sebastian Bowen, chose this as his special project and we're delighted it could happen during these difficult times. Thanks to the Lord-Lieutenant, the High Sheriff, the Mayor of Hereford, local councillors and the representatives of our armed forces for attending today's ceremony.

CANARY BRIDGE

The cycle and walking bridge from St James to Rotherwas is now officially the Canary Bridge and is lit with yellow light during the hours of darkness. 

Originally it would have been unveiled as the sun was setting on the 75th anniversary of VE Day with fun, laughter and, no doubt, some tears, but these are not normal times.  We hope that it will give people some light and hope and offer a chance to honour and remember the work done by all of the Rotherwas workers and munitions workers across the country.

A temporary sign is in place and the permanent sign will be installed as soon as possible.

This has been made possible thanks to the Chairman of Herefordshire Council Sebastian Bowen, the Lord Lieutenant Lady Darnley and her staff Michelle and Vicky, and to Rear Admiral (retired) Philip Wilcocks and Air Vice Marshal (retired)Mike Smart and the VE Day organising committee.  Sincere thanks to Mark Edwards and the team at Herefordshire Council for installing the lights during the complications of the present restrictions. A huge thanks to friend and heritage supporter Chris Smart for taking the fabulous photos of the bridge which you can see on this site. 

VE Day bridge-3.jpg

Your Families and War - Saturday February 8th

Saturday February 8th - 11am to 3pm

Herefordshire Archive and Records Centre

Hear more about Rotherwas Together's plans to create a Roll of Honour and a Munitions History website and share your family's stories.  We want to hear what you and your family and friends did in WW1 and WW2.  Please bring your anecdotes, photographs, maps, artefacts and stories along to our drop in sessions. The Roll of Honour working group will share what they learned during a two-day study trip to Bletchley Park funded by a Go and See grant from Herefordshire's A Great Place. 

All welcome – Refreshments Provided – Free Parking

For more information please contact Rotherwas Together community group at Rotherwas@hotmail.com

Open Day - Saturday August 10th - Herefordshire Archives

Come and join us to find out more about the history of Rotherwas through the centuries and the munitions factories of WW1 and WW2:

10am to 4pm - a chance to look at displays, artefacts, documents, art and a scale model of Rotherwas, and find out how more about our heritage projects.
11am - Talk by Bill Laws - author of Herefordshire’s Home Front in the Second World War
12 noon - Presentation of commemorative badges to former ROF Rotherwas workers
1pm - Rotherwas Together AGM
2pm - Talk by ROF Rotherwas Project Officer Angela Williams

Free entry, refreshments, toilets, free parking

Directions: Herefordshire Archives and Records Centre, Fir Tree Lane, Rotherwas, Hereford HR2 6LA

01432 260750

June 15th 2019 - Roll of Honour

The Ministry of Defence has transferred the remaining documents that it holds on munitions workers to the Herefordshire Archives and Records Centre (HARC) at Rotherwas.  This is wonderful news and thanks to the efforts of Elizabeth Semper O’Keefe, the former County Archivist, Rees Griffith, Senior Archivist, and all of the staff and volunteers at HARC.   There is a considerable amount of material so it's not possible for it to be viewed by the public yet but we will be working with HARC to apply for grants so that it can be digitised and made accessible online. We hope that, in the future, people will be able to view and search an online Roll of Honour similar to the one available for Bletchley Park.