This plaque was once attached to the building of the local abattoir or slaughterhouse, which stood opposite Leominster Station. The abattoir was the responsibility of the council. In the 1950s and 1960s the slaughterman was Malcolm Newman, pictured in the photo sitting outside the abbatoir gates with his pet dog and her puppies. As well as working in town, Mr Newman used to travel out to farms to despatch sick or injured animals. In the early 20th century, many animals were moved into and around the town on foot. Herds of cattle were driven down Etnam Street from the market, either to the abattoir, or to be loaded live onto trains. One Leominster man still remembers being paid a few pence with his friends in the 1930s to stand at the entrance to small alleyways leading off Etnam Street, in order to stop animals escaping! There were fewer Health & Safety and animal welfare regulations in those days. Two people still recall the fun they had when they were given an inflated pig’s bladder by the slaughter man to use as a football, with no ill effects.