Local History

1940s old vintage original magazine cover of Woman magazine dated 24th August 1946 when supplies were still restricted under post-war rationing

Mary Grieve shaped a generation of women

Tucked within the village of Long Marston lies an extraordinary connection to one of the most influential voices in British women’s journalism. Mary Grieve (1906-1998), was the long-time editor of Woman magazine and an advocate whose work shaped how millions understood family life, work and womanhood in the mid-20th century. Although her career took her […]

Home Farm, painting before restoration

Down on the farm

Local historian Tim Amsden tells the tale of Home Farm, the subject of a new display at Tring Local History Museum, and its former residents. A newly-restored oil painting has gone on show at Tring Local History Museum, with a display telling the fascinating story of its subject, Home Farm, off Park Road. Home Farm […]

William Cooper

Coopers – From modest vet to global sheep‑dip empire

Berkhamsted once rang with the clang of steam engines and the drift of yellow arsenic dust. At its heart stood Coopers of Berkhamsted, a pioneering agricultural chemical firm that began as a one-man veterinary experiment and became a global brand. The company’s founder, William Cooper, started life in modest circumstances, but his innovation reshaped farming […]

Old and New Lime Walk

A History of Lime Walk

Berkhamsted resident Jenny Thorburn, who is researching the history and geography of Berkhamsted Common, uncovers the 500-year-old history behind a part of Berkhamsted that will be familiar to many local walkers. One of the most direct routes to the beautiful countryside north of Berkhamsted is to go uphill from the castle side of the station, […]

Champneys Ladies Stretching

Champneys – 100 Years of Wellness

Now a go-to destination for celebrity clientele, Champneys’ story began with a determined boy from Latvia… In the tranquil heart of the countryside, near Wigginton, surrounded by 170 acres of rolling parkland, sits a luxury health resort that has quietly shaped the nation’s wellness landscape for a century. This year, Champneys Tring marks its 100th […]

Old Grey Mare

Time Gentlemen Please!

Berkhamsted and surrounding villages are blessed with plenty of watering holes, but back in the annals of history there were even more inns… If you did a pub crawl around Berkhamsted now, you’d have imbibed more pints than most of us could handle, but Berkhamsted has seen many more licensed premises over the years that […]

Viewed from across the Wendover Arm, the steam mill erected in 1875.

Going Through the Mill

Flour milling is Tring’s oldest continuous business – we look at its long history. Heygates Mill is a familiar place to the residents in Tring, and while it’s now a modern operation producing over 12 tons of flour per hour, its history extends back several hundred years, making the manufacture of flour Tring’s oldest continuous […]

The newly erected Berkhamsted Town Hall, before the clock was added

Heart of the Community

Berkhamsted Town Hall has offered a venue for educating Victorian workers, feeding wartime evacuees and marrying the town’s citizens. Once derelict, it is now a thriving community hub once more… Berkhamsted Town Hall is one of the most recognisable buildings on the High Street, but what is its history, and how did such an outstanding […]

Stirling Moss - DDMBDC

Stirling Moss – Racing Legend

The internationally celebrated racing driver started his career in Tring, driving an old car around his family home’s orchard. The orchard at White Cloud Farm in Tring was the location for the beginning of a vastly successful career for the racing legend that was Sir Stirling Moss. Sir Stirling is considered one of the world’s […]

The Rex Cinema Berkhamsted

Berkhamsted’s Big Screens

As the Rex cinema celebrates its 20th anniversary, we look back over more than 100 years of its predecessors in the town. Berkhamsted has a long association with the world of the big screen, thanks to the location of the BFI (British Film Institute) National Archive, and with our own Rex cinema celebrating the 20th […]

Tring Tiles British Museum

The Mystery of the Tring Tiles

The Tring Tiles come home The V&A has two examples of the Tring Tiles, plus two fragments, found by Tring people and given to  the museum in the 1920s and 30s. These examples are the real thing, and will be on display at Tring Local History Museum until the spring. ‘It’s a great honour for […]