Your Projects
Preserving memories of the brine baths in Droitwich Spa
Worcestershire is probably one of the last destinations that would come to mind if you were ever looking to treat yourself to a spot of saltwater bathing. However, the landlocked Midlands county is actually something of a saltwater haven. As a result of a quirk of geology, naturally occurring brine flows beneath the town of Droitwich Spa, where it emerges from local springs.
Saltwater bathing was popularised during the 19th century as a way to treat ailments such as arthritis and rheumatism, and visitors once flocked from far and wide to sample Droitwich’s saline waters, leading to the creation of a dedicated ‘brine baths’ – and a great deal of prosperity.
But since the closure of the baths’ final incarnation in 2008, knowledge of the asset that put Droitwich on the map is now at risk of being lost forever.
A desire to ensure that this heritage survives serves as the motivation behind a new oral history project entitled Brine Memories ( brinememories.org.uk), which seeks to collect stories of the baths.
“There are so many people in the town who seem to have forgotten why its full name is Droitwich Spa,” says the project’s co-founder Julia Letts. “Certain details of the baths are being lost because they only exist as people’s memories – they’re not the sort of things that are being written down.”
Supported by a grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the initiative was first set in motion by Julia and fellow Droitwich resident Sue Webber, who has been involved in a campaign to build a new brine baths in the town.
As well as gathering anecdotes, the project’s volunteers have been busy writing blog posts and sharing their discoveries via social media. They are also producing short films combining archive photos with oral histories. Among the videos already available on the Brine Memories YouTube channel at bit.ly/yt-brine are the story of a woman who used to bathe in a knitted swimming costume as a child, and the recollections of a GP who prescribed brine treatments for his patients.
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the project has been growing in scope. Thanks to volunteer Catrin Meredith, new facets of Droitwich’s brine heritage are being uncovered on a regular basis.
“Football clubs like Birmingham City, Sheffield United and Wolverhampton Wanderers used to send their players to Droitwich for physiotherapy,” explains Catrin. “The baths were mentioned in medical journals, so there was a serious side to what used to take place there. But on the other hand, they were also used for cocktail parties!”
When the project is over, the town’s heritage centre will receive its oral history recordings and research material. However, the initiative is already having a positive impact on the local community through a collaboration with Westacre Middle School, whose Year Five pupils have been interviewing residents about their ‘brine memories’ over Zoom. What’s more, the baths’ history will be a permanent part of the curriculum.
“None of the children will be able to say that they didn’t know about the brine baths and Droitwich’s salt history,” says Julia. “To be able to get 10 year olds excited and knowledgeable about their town’s heritage is hugely rewarding.”
lost Details of the baths are being because they only exist as memories