Places Stories

The origins of the show can be traced right back to 1797 and John Clerk. In a book, with the eye-catching title of General Views on Agriculture in the County of Hereford, he pointed out that there was no agricultural society in the county.

This clearly struck a chord with the local farmers, as a society was formed the same year.

School trip to the show

They held their first Show in 1798 on the streets of Hereford, with the event being overseen by the Earl of Oxford.

There was no money on offer as a prize in those days, but there were three splendid silver goblets to be won.

Momentum for a bigger show began to develop when the Herefordshire Society merged first with Worcestershire in 1894, and then with Gloucestershire in 1922.

The result was the Three Counties Agricultural Society, and the show of the same name.

Home by the hills

It wasn't until 1958 that the show got its permanent home in the shadow of the Malvern Hills.

Before that the show was staged at a many different locations, including Abervagenny, Monmouth, Kidderminster and Droitwich, Worcester's Pitchcroft and Spetchley Park and Staverton Airport in Gloucestershire.

One of the attempts to stage the show at a different venue backfired badly.

Pitchcroft flooded

In 1924, the Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin MP was elected President, and it was decided to stage the show at Pitchcroft in Worcester.

Unfortunately the heavens opened, the rain fell, and floods of eight feet engulfed the racecourse, and most of the marquees.

There were no shows in 1917 and 1918, due to World War I, and the first show after World War II fell victim to an outbreak of foot and mouth.

The showground site at Malvern covers 70 acre and the whole area owned by the society is 300 acres, including the 100 year old Langdale Wood.