You are entering the shopping precinct and on the right hand side you will see a mural modelled in clay, depicting important buildings and historical items in Droitwich Spa.

These buildings are The Brine Baths, Canal Bridge, Chateau Impney, Font in St. Andrew’s Church, Friar Street Houses, Old Cock Inn, Priory House, Raven Hotel, Sacred Heart Church, a Salt Barge, Salters Hall, St. Augustine’s Church and the Old Town Hall.

You will see many of these on the tour.

Retracing your steps to St. Andrew’s Street and proceeding down the street you will see St. Andrew’s Church on the right hand side.  Due to subsidence the church tower became dangerous and had to be dismantled in 1928.  The subsidence was caused by the extraction of the brine for the salt workings.

Entering the church you will see the bells stored one inside the other in the north aisle.  The main part of the church dates from 1290, but there are some earlier parts including carvings on the capitals of the arches, which support the tower.

It is said St. Richard was christened here, although not in the current font which is dated some four centuries later.  The chapel in the northeast corner is dedicated to St. Richard.  One of the memorial tablets in the church is dedicated to Captain Norbury who fought with Admiral Benbow in the West Indies

Opposite St. Andrew’s Church is the old Town Hall. 

This was built in 1825 and superseded a building called the “Exchequer”.

The council chamber was upstairs and the ground floor, which was open behind the pillars, was used for a weekly market, which spilled into the square, which was the medieval centre of the town.

Turn right by the side of the church and walk along the High Street. You will see that buildings on the south side of the street are leaning at peculiar angles, again caused by brine extraction.  At one time the High Street was level even within living memory.

Turn into Gurneys Lane, which is on the left hand side.

This is the site of the last brine pumping station operating between 1850 and 1921.
The brine was heated in large pans and when the liquid evaporated the remaining salt crystals were packed into boxes for transport. An enormous amount of fuel was needed in the evaporation process producing a large amount of pollution from all the salt works. At first wood was used for burning depleting the surrounding woodland. Coal became the main fuel in 16^th century.