Most popular event in Rowvember’s history sees queues stretch back to the Cross
Nearly a thousand people turned out on Sunday 8 November to step inside the Second World War air raid shelter beneath St Michael’s Arcade on Bridge Street – making it the most popular event in the history of Rowvember, the annual celebration of the Chester Rows run by community interest company Heritage Chester CIC.
Over just two hours, 975 visitors passed through the door, with the queue stretching up Bridge Street as far as the Cross at its peak. Volunteers in Heritage Chester’s purple sweatshirts kept the line moving and handed out information sheets, while a Home Guard officer and female Home Guard volunteer, in full uniform walked the street, giving the afternoon a fitting wartime atmosphere on Remembrance weekend.
The shelter, hidden in the basement of St Michael’s Arcade, had room for 475 people during the war. Visitors walked its long passageway and learned how Chester prepared for the conflict – the Council set up an air raid precautions committee as early as 1936 – and how the city came through 232 air raid alerts and ten bombing raids in 1940 and 1941. Heritage Chester chose Remembrance Sunday for the opening, billing it as “a rare chance to see a small part of Chester’s underground that you won’t have seen before”.
Visitors were quick to share their experience online. Local community pages reported a “huge queue” on Bridge Street, while one visitor described it as a “fascinating look” at the shelter. Others called it simply “fantastic” and “great to have the opportunity”, with one noting that even the volunteers on the door were surprised by the numbers.
James Dixon, Heritage Chester CIC team member and lead for Rowvember, said: “We know people are curious about what lies beneath the Rows, but we never imagined a queue reaching past the Cross. Seeing nearly a thousand people – families, older residents with their own wartime stories, and visitors from further afield – come out for a piece of Chester’s hidden history was incredible. Events like this simply couldn’t go ahead without our amazing volunteers, and we can’t thank them enough. We’ll definitely be looking to open the shelter again.”
More to come this Rowvember
Rowvember runs throughout November, celebrating Chester’s unique Rows with tours, talks, open houses and family activities. Still to come:
• Tuesday 10 November – Crime Control and the Chester Rows tour, Sketching the Rows with Chester Urban Sketchers, Rowments: Moments on the Rows performance, and Murder on The Rows games night
• Saturday 14 November – John Douglas on The Rows tours, Folklore & Fantastical Architecture Walk, and Mrs Mainwaring’s Masquerades talk
• Tuesday 17 November – Rows Past, Present & Future talk with Sir Donald Insall, plus an exclusive open house at Lowe’s Museum (also 24 November)
• Saturday 21 November – Rows Family Day, 12-4pm at Unit 18, St Michael’s Arcade, with a trail hidden in Rows businesses
• Late November – talks on archaeology and the “missing” Rows, rare open hours at 53 Lower Bridge Street and the 28 Eastgate Street crypt, and Parliament, Power & Civil War tours
Full listings and booking: http://www.heritagechester.co.uk/rowvember
Looking ahead: Chester Heritage Festival 2027
The 12th Chester Heritage Festival will run from Saturday 29 May to Sunday 6 June 2027, coinciding with the half-term holiday. Organisations and individuals interested in contributing a tour, talk, workshop or performance are invited to submit an expression of interest by 30 November 2026 via info@chesterheritagefestival.co.uk.
