Mystery of cellar deepens as ancient tunnel is discovered

THE owners of an old Tamworth hotel are hunting for a hidden piece of the building's history – its old cellars.

Adrian and Bev Chadwick, of the Colin Grazier Hotel, in Church Street, have stepped up their search after discovering a brick tunnel thought to lead to an ancient, underground oil-fired boiler room.

The newly-discovered tunnel in the grounds of the Colin Grazier Hotel – thought to lead to an underground oil-fired boiler room.
The building, which dates to the mid-1800s, was previously Tamworth's police station.

And they believe that a cellar beneath the building might contain artefacts from the building's past and the town's history.

Adrian said: "There must be a cellar, or cellars, under the main building. Who knows what's down there?

"If anyone has got any information that could help us, we would urge them to get in touch."

The couple took over the lease of the building in 2006 when it was suggested there could be an old cellar.

"We went back to the owner to ask him and he didn't know anything about a cellar," Adrian said. "It's always been in the back of our minds.

"We thought we'd found the cellar in 2007 but it was just an old stairwell that had been blocked off.

"Since then, we've had many discussions about where the entrance may be."

He said he had been looking at old street plans and photographs for clues when he noticed there used to be chimneys.

And that led to the recent discovery of an access to a boiler room.

"It was covered up with a concrete capping stone," Adrian said. "We found the first step and excavated down a few feet and found a second and third step."

The access revealed the underground tunnel, which has not yet been explored until it is deemed safe.

The building was erected in 1847 and used as a police station until 1974. The original structure was extended at the rear between 1847 and 1900 and the old police cells remain.

After the station closure, the site was converted and used as offices for a number of years until the late 1990s when the building was left derelict.

In 2001, it was developed into a small town centre hotel.

Adrian said: "Tamworth used to be the capital of Mercia. Our premises backs on to what was thought to be King Offa's royal palace.

"We just want to see what's down there."

Do you have any information that could help? Email the newsdesk at tamworth. editorial@cintamworth.co. uk.