Hereford and Worcester was a county in the English Midlands, lying just east of the Welsh border. Until the early 1970’s, the area that became Hereford and Worcester formed two separate counties–Herefordshire, administered at Hereford, and Worcestershire, administered at Worcester. The two counties were merged in 1974 to form the new county of Hereford and Worcester. At that time, some towns that had been part of Worcestershire were taken into the new county of West Midlands. These towns were Dudley, Halesowen, Stourbridge, and Warley. In 1998, the area was divided again into two separate counties: Herefordshire and Worcestershire.
The rich soil made Hereford and Worcester one of the best farming areas in the United Kingdom. Characteristic of the unspoiled countryside of Hereford and Worcester were orchards of apple, pear, or plum trees; fields of barley, hops, oats, and wheat; and grazing cattle.
The Romans founded the city of Worcester. The Saxons founded the first settlement at Hereford in the A.D. 600’s. The Danes invaded the area in the 900’s.
