MANY of us are guilty of taking our home county for granted – walking the same streets we always have and rarely stopping to think about what was there before.

And although there are some well-known buildings and places of historical importance throughout the county – beautiful ancient churches and former market halls to name just a few – there is much more waiting to be discovered.

One town in particular is shrouded in ‘hidden history’ according to the author of a book which uses 46 photographs and sketches to take its reader on a journey through 800 years of history.

The book, titled ‘Leominster History Tour’, is the work of Malcolm Mason, a trustee of the town’s museum who has written two other successful books about Leominster’s history.

Mr Mason, who lives in Eardisley, has featured many well-known locations including Broad Street, the railway station as it was in 1900 and Corn Square, known then as the Corn Exchange, in the late 1800s, to offer up a taste of Leominster’s rich history.

Mr Mason said: “I wrote a book about five years ago called Leominster Through Time which really tied up with the 40th anniversary of Leominster Museum, of which I am a trustee.

“That’s how that came about and then Amberley Books contacted me earlier this year and said they had this new series [taking readers on a ‘history tour’ through their town].

“The first photo of Poplands House was straight from the first book – it’s a photo I took in 2012 compared with a painting from 1911.

“But I have also incorporated some new material which I couldn’t put into the old book including the railway station and the Grange.”

The photographs and sketches used for the book come from the Leominster Museum archive and from extensive postcard collections owned by Mr Mason’s friends, as well as others which have been sourced from town residents.

Mr Mason, 61, who has been involved with Eardisley History Group for several years, said a particular favourite in the book is an 1850 sketch of the White Lion at the bottom of Etnam Street.

It shows the building in a rural setting, with the now-covered Pinsley Brook in the foreground and cattle on the land nearby, presenting the changes that have taken place over the years.

Mr Mason said there is also talk of re-printing an earlier book which is currently out of print after selling out.

“There is a definite interest in local history and I know there is a thriving historical society in the town,” he said.

“There is a lot to see in Leominster but you have to look for it.

“It’s not one of those places like Ludlow or Shrewsbury where you walk through and think ‘this is an historical town’. In Leominster it’s much more hidden but there is an awful lot there.”

Leominster History Tour is available to purchase online at amberley-books.com/leominster-history-tour.html