A PIECE of Nailsworth's heritage has been returned to the town after historic medals were purchased through donations from the community.


Medals won at national competitions more than 100 years ago by Hillier's Bacon Factory, which was based in Newmarket, were bought from a collector by Nailsworth couple Bill and Joyce Affleck for £480 in June.


That cost has since been recovered by public donations.


The medals were handed over to the town council at its December meeting and they will be displayed in a frame for public viewing at the Town Hall.


Mrs Affleck said: "A medal collector in Bath had them and didn't really have much interest in them. He saw they were from Nailsworth and got in touch with us.


"We met with him half way in a pub and discussed it and we both thought it was something that ought to be in Nailsworth.


"We bought them from him and the whole cost plus a bit extra towards a display case has been recovered thanks to the generosity of the Nailsworth people.


"It was such a good response and so typical of Nailsworth."


Hillier's Bacon Factory won 23 medals for its products over the years and Mr and Mrs Affleck acquired 10 solid silver medals awarded by the Dairy Farmers Association between 1899 and 1905.


The factory was established in 1819 and became a public company in 1865 known as HillierÕs Bacon Curing Co Ltd.


Pigs were purchased from Bristol Market and local farmers, with some 450 slaughtered each week and products were shipped to shops and wholesalers across the country.


Hillier's also had its own shops in Nailsworth, Stroud, Gloucester and Cheltenham selling various bacon products, smoked hams, sausages, pork pies and lard until the factory's closure in 2001.