Rotherwas ROF Project (Rotherwas Together)

A digital archive has been created about the Rotherwas Royal Ordnance Factory Hereford and its workers and we are also working on a series of community events and work with local schools to explore and preserve its history for future generations, including walks, talks and research sessions.

The site opened in 1916 as a munitions filling factory and became one of the largest explosive filling sites in the UK. It covered more than 300 acres and comprised more than 370 buildings. Employing mainly women, the site was bombed during the Second World War, in 1942, and suffered a major explosion in 1944.

We know that thousands of women and hundreds of men worked at the site across both world wars, but we don’t have access to a complete record of their names. Working alongside Herefordshire Archives and Records Centre, we are seeking to collect the names of all of the men and women who worked at the munitions factory during WW1 and WW2. In order to do this, we are asking people to send us the details of their relatives who worked at the factory and share with us any details about their role and experiences and/or any Rotherwas artefacts/documents or photographs they may have.

We are also working with Herefordshire Archives which holds 221,000 original records of former munitions employees for both World Wars in order that these might be made available. https://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/herefordshire-archive-records-centre/rotherwas-munitions-project