The Bromsgrove Society - Pride, Preservation, Progress
Welcome to the Bromsgrove Society
The Bromsgrove Society exists to preserve the history and promote the sustainable development of the town of Bromsgrove in north Worcestershire.
Read more about Our Work and How to Join
Bromsgrove on the Home Front
10.00 a.m. – 4.00pm, Saturday, 15th November
Methodist Centre, Stratford Road
To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, the Bromsgrove Society will host a free drop-in event highlighting how the conflict affected the town.
Join us for a fun-packed and informative day looking back at what life was like in Bromsgrove from 1939 to 1945.
Displays will include:
- Dig for Victory
- ‘Make Do and Mend’ and the Girls Land Army
- Bromsgrove’s War
- Air Raid Protection
- Evacuees
- Bromsgrove men and women who served
- Woolton Pie – a wartime staple
- Americans in Bromsgrove
- Impact on the Austin and other local industries.
In addition to the Bromsgrove Society, participants include: All Saints Church; Austin at War; Avoncroft Museum; Bromsgrove British Legion; Bromsgrove School; Lickey Hills Local History Society; The Norton Museum; Remember the Fallen; and Worcestershire Police History.
We are grateful to the UK Shared Prosperity Fund administered by the District Council, and the Andrew Harris Charitable Trust for granting funding to support this event.
Bromsgrove Rousler 2025
The latest edition of the Bromsgrove Rousler, our popular local history magazine, is now available. To celebrate the Rousler's 40th anniversary, this year's edition is a special bumper issue packed full of stories on people and events that have helped shape Bromsgrove’s history.
Topics in this year’s Rousler include:
- Big Bertha: The Story of a Railway Icon
- Bromsgrove's influence on the poet A.E. Housman
- New research on the Bromsgrove Guild
- The Remarkable Walford Sisters
- Albert Malin's War
- Thomas Swift and the Electric Picture Palace.
See here to purchase the Rousler from our online bookstall
(leaves this website)
Bromsgrove Society Members will receive their copies shortly. Find a local stockist.
Rouslers make an ideal Christmas present, especially for friends now living elsewhere.
Back issues and a wide variety of books can be bought through our online bookstall.
Local History Talks 2025/26
The 2025/26 season of Tuesday evening local history talks starts with
- 16th September :Recent Discoveries at Hartlebury Castle, speaker Tim Cornah.
Further talks until the end of the year are:
- 21st October 2025: Herbert Austin and the Longbridge Story with Max Hunt
- 18th November 2025: Bromsgrove Boulders, Born of Fire, Carried by Ice with Julie Schroder
- 2nd December 2025: Over by Christmas with Quintin Watt.
The full programme is available here.
The talks are held at The Methodist Centre, Stratford Road, B60 1AS. Doors open 7.15pm, all talks begin at 7.45pm. All welcome. Admission: Members £3, Non-Members £4.
Special General Meeting, 2nd Dec
The Bromsgrove Society’s Annual General Meeting was convened on Wednesday 2nd July at Avoncroft Museum. Unfortunately, the formal business could not be completed because not enough members were present.
A Special General Meeting will be held to formally conduct the business of the AGM on Tuesday, 2nd December at 7.30pm at the Methodist Centre, Stratford Road, Bromsgrove prior to the Tuesday Talk.
Agenda for the Meeting:
- Agree the Year End Accounts, dated 5th April 2025
- Vote on the updated Constitution
- Elect Officers and Accountant
Copies of the accounts, the updated constitution and nominations for Officers will be made available in advance at the Tuesday Talks in September, October, November and are available via the links below.
We hope that members will arrive in time to support the SGM, which we anticipate will be concluded before the scheduled talk start time.
- SGM Announcement, agenda including nominations and constitution
- Accounts to April 2025
- AGM Minutes from 2024
- Review of the Year 2024/25
- AGM Minutes from 2025
Latest Newsletter
The Bromsgrove Society Newsletter
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The September 2025 issue of the Society's newsletter is now available, containing details of:
Click the links to download the September Newsletter (PDF format). |
Upcoming Events
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18.November.2025
Bromsgrove Boulders - Born of Fire,... -
02.December.2025 | 19.30
Special General Meeting -
02.December.2025 | 19.45
Over by Christmas -
20.January.2026
Folksongs and Folklore of the West ... -
17.February.2026
Women in the Glass Industry
Remember Subscriptions!
Please consider paying by standing order as this significantly reduces administration time.
You can renew online and check the current subscription rates on our Membership Page.
| Payment can now be made by PayPal |
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Buy Books Online
A variety of books about Bromsgrove and the surrounding area are available to purchase via our online bookstall (links to external site).
We accept payment by credit/debit card, using the SumUp gateway, or you can also pay by cheque.
Recent arrivals are: The Vernons of Hanbury, by Andrew Harris; and A History of the Bromsgrove Concerts.
Order Our New History of Bromsgrove
The Bromsgrove Society's new book Bromsgrove: The Story of a Market Town is written by well-known local historians and Bromsgrove Society members Jenny Townshend and Julian Hunt, and chronicles the history of Bromsgrove over the last one thousand years. Based on extensive original research, the authors present an exhaustive account of the town’s development, from a medieval settlement to a prosperous market town and industrial centre whose influence extended across the whole of North Worcestershire.
The book is priced £25 plus p&p and is available from our bookstall.