Mammoth and bison roamed Droitwich during the Ice Age (80,000 to 8,000BC). They were attracted to the area by saltish brackish pools which formed along the banks of the River Salwarpe.

The history of Droitwich salt goes back 200 million years to when the area was periodically flooded by seawater. The water evaporated in the prevailing hot climate, leaving the salt behind, becoming buried under a deep bed of clay.

Movements in the Earth’s crust folded the clays and tipped the salt closest to the surface directly under Droitwich. The salt was dissolved by ground water and brine streams were created 200ft below the ground, emerging at the surface as springs.

The mammoth and bison were hunted by man and the earliest man-made objects found in Droitwich date from the end of the Ice Age.