Dacorum
Properties and events in Dacorum
Before heading out for your Heritage Open Days visit, please check entries for last-minute changes.
'A Walk Back in Time' - History of Berkhamsted in 10 historical buildings
A guided tour of Berkhamsted's historic town centre, pointing out strategic places and buildings of interest.
A Radical Village - the Baptists in Northchurch
An introductory talk outlining the strength of Non-conformity in the area, especially in the villages. This guided tour outlines the story of the Baptists in Northchurch. The tour starts in the Car Park of Northchurch Social Centre.
A Walk into the Past: Berkhamsted Place, Successor to the Castle
A Walk in the Past: Berkhamsted Place A successor to the castle. Tour includes the surviving servants quarter, kitchen garden with Victorian vinery and the awesome Great Barn, the largest in Herts!
Amersfort Garden Tour
Amersfort, a fine Arts and Craft House and garden, designed by Ernest Willmott and planted by Gertrude Jekyll. Both house and garden are adapted to the surrounding landscape.
Ashridge House and the Curse of the Bridgewaters
Discover the dark past of Ashridge House, a former monastery used by Henry VIII for his children. This woodland walk explores ancient, uneven ground unsuitable for wheelchairs. Dan would be happy to do a separate date for those with mobility issues.
Berkhamsted Castle Guided Tour
Free guided tour of the ruins of this fine motte and bailey castle, with many royal associations, led by experienced volunteers from Berkhamsted Castle Trust.
Berkhamsted Foundling Hospital - Memories of Childhood
A former Foundling will tell us what life was like for the children in Berkhamsted Foundling Hospital 1935-55. Walking around the present Ashlyns School they will recall memories and feelings of those days.
Berkhamsted Railway Walk
A trip down memory lane of Berkhamsted Railway
Berkhamsted's Finest Architect: Charles Henry Rew
This tour celebrates the remarkable, but largely forgotten legacy of Charles Henry Rew, who designed pretty well all major and many other buildings of late Victorian/Edwardian Berkhamsted.
BFI National Film & Television Archive
In the 90th year of the BFI National Archive, see the specialist skills and knowledge involved in preserving the UK's screen heritage. We will host tours, demos and exhibits, all celebrating the BFI collection and the people who work to maintain it
Display of the Lost Buildings of Berkhamsted
A timeline of Berkhamsted history through a photographic exhibition of lost buildings from Roman times to present day.
Frogmore Paper Mill – the birthplace of paper’s industrial revolution
Frogmore Paper Mill is the world's oldest mechanised paper mill; the birthplace of paper's industrial revolution. The visits during Heritage Open Days are some of the first for several years as the site suffered severe fire damage in 2022.
Gadespring Watercress Beds
Discover the history of a once thriving local industry and tour the original watercress farm on the River Bulbourne. The site has been naturalised during the inactivity of the watercress farm and is now a wildlife habitat.
Hemel Hempstead Friends (Quaker) Meeting House & Burial Ground (built 1718)
Discover over 300 years of local history, view the Grade II listed Quaker Meeting House and hear about the people interred in the adjacent burial ground.
Hemel Hempstead Old Town guided walk
Take a guided walk through the historical Old Town and learn about buildings dating back to the 1500s, the 850 year old St Mary’s Church (Grade I Listed) and the lives of the people who lived and worked here.
Open Store: Dacorum Heritage
Discover the Art of Ovaltine with a small exhibition of a taste of the archive, and while you're here join a short tour of the museum store.
Piccotts End: Pre-Reformation Wall paintings in a Grade I listed 16th century Hall House
This is a rare opportunity to see these unique early 16th century Wall paintings, recently featured on Celebrity Antiques Roadtrip. Come and learn what they tell us about the religious turmoil in the area on the eve of Henry VIII's Reformation.
St Peter's Church and Court House
A detailed tour of the church, pointing out important architectural and historical features. Visit also to Tudor Court House, a much-altered building which has had many uses over the years.
The Lost Pubs of Northchurch Village - from the 17th - 21st Century
Starting at the George and Dragon, Northchurch's only remaining pub, we will walk around the village centre visiting the places where public houses once stood, to discover their past and hear stories of the people that lived, worked and drank in them
The Lost Wharves of Berkhamsted - A guided tour of yesterday's canal
This guided tour identifies the sites and stories behind the many wharves which once existed along the banks of the canal and led to the growth of Berkhamsted in Victorian times. Visitors will learn of the importance of the canals to Berkhamsted.