Cirencester Archaeological and Historical Society
Welcome to our website.
Do enjoy browsing from the menu above. Our evening talks and yearly membership begin every September, so watch this space.
Visitors are always welcome to our talks for £5.00. Please see the Join Us page here for membership details.
Society News
We are keen to be a useful portal into the best of archaeology and local history. If you are interested in a bit of research on a topic close to your heart, or fancy giving some time to help out with, for example, transcribing documents, Alison Wagstaff would like to help point you to the right experts. Contact her through the general email cahs@cirenhistory.org
WEAVERS’ HALL
Thomas Street, Cirencester GL7 2AX
CAHS is very pleased to host this new video from Cirencester Weavers Company showing the remarkable features of this unique building – Grade II* listed, Cirencester’s earliest domestic building still in active use, with a rare 17th and 18th century wall painting conserved in recent years. There are also opportunities to visit in person.
Open Days -Saturday 28 June & Saturday 26 July Short guided tours between 2pm and 3.30pm. Admission free (donations welcomed) and prior booking essential – by email only to
Numbers strictly limited so book early!
From Our Archive
New Developments are ahead for the Kings Head Hotel in Cirencester’s Market Place with the news that it has been acquired by the hotel branch of the Brakspears pub chain.
Take a look at our article on its history, republished in 2017 below,
The King’s Head Hotel, Cirencester –A town phoenix is re-born
Social media: We are on Facebook, twitter and Instagram. See links at the bottom of every page.
There is much to explore on this site. See Projects, Places to Visit and Publications. If we have your email address, we can send you items of interest from time to time, including occasional meetings of sister societies.
William Croome – his work for the care of churches. This full article was originally the Croome Lecture presented in 1993 and subsequently published in our Cirencester Miscellany No 3 in 1996. We’re pleased to be able to add it to our website in full, with some additional photographs. Here is the link
The demolition and rebuilding of flats off The Avenue, Cirencester, brought an article in our Newsletter 49 of 2009 on public art to the fore. The planning assessment shows much archaeology under the site, believed to be the original Roman town centre. The site has now been rebuilt.
Gloucestershire Archives are always keen to hear about any old documents, maps etc that are coming up for sale by auction in order to bring them to public access. Sometimes they are able to raise money to buy them for the archives before auctions push the price up. Claire Collins is Head of Collections and can be contacted by anyone with any information.
We are still receiving updates and enquiries about our information on those who died and even survived World War I. If you have more information than we have published about any of the people on the Cirencester monuments, do drop us a note.
Know Your Place West now has mapping for Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Somerset. Maps from about 1840 to date can be compared and after moderation you can add historical information. Do watch the video to see how to use it! Have fun! Tithe maps have been added where they exist.