When someone thinks of Bristol, notable landmarks may spring to mind. The likes of the Clifton Suspension Bridge, the SS Great Britain and Cabot Tower are regularly referenced and mostly well-known by those near and far.
Digging a little deeper into areas of Bristol and the wider fringe, there is a whole layer of history which is waiting to be discovered. Some of these nostalgic sights are plain and obvious, with a story that proves to be more elusive, whilst others are hidden from the offset.
Throughout 2024, we have told many of Bristol’s historical stories that have quietly faded away in recent memory. From St Nicholas Market and the hidden air raid shelter, to the former ferry which took passengers from Aust to Beachley, even looking at the fate of what once was a monumental leisure park in South Bristol, Bristol Live has seen it all.
As we move into 2025, here are just some of the hidden nostalgia that we have uncovered and the stories that we told.
The air raid shelter beneath the Corn Exchange
The entrance to the shelter can only be accessed below the Corn Exchange and is mostly intact from the 1940s.
(Image: PAUL GILLIS / Reach PLC)
In May, we visited the depths of the Corn Exchange to find the hidden air raid shelter which remains mostly intact from when it was used in the 1940s. Having opened to the public for a year at that point, the St Nicholas Market and Air Raid Shelter Walking Tour shone a light on how Bristolians had to live during the Bristol Blitz in World War II.
The shelter was originally planned in as early as 1937 ahead of the prospect of war and specifically bombs to drop over the city. The shelter could hold up to 100 people in two surrounded by blast-proof doors.
It is now a museum full of historic items from the war, including ration kits, gas masks and posters from the time. Look even closer and carvings from the people, who at times waited more than 12 hours for the bells to indicate that a raid was over, remain on the walls.
The Corn Exchange was also used as a music venue during the 1960s, when the likes of The Who and Pink Floyd performed at the venue. The Rolling Stones played at the Corn Exchange on their very first tour.
In addition, 300-year-old architecture on the ceiling remains covered up due to a glass roof that was replaced and positioned too low. The architecture depicts Egyptians looking down on the Corn Exchange when it was a market when it was built in 1743.
The Bristol time
The black hand represents Bristol time, a concept which was used until GMT was brought into law in 1880.
(Image: PAUL GILLIS / Reach PLC)
Sticking with the Corn Exchange, the clock on the outside of the building has long-confused Bristolians as it shows two different times. The red hand shows Greenwich Mean Time but the black hand shows Bristol time, a throwback to an era before the time across the UK was standardised.
When the UK used solar time, every part of the UK would have its own time as the sun would reach the highest point in the sky at different times, depending how east or west a city was. Before the days of railways and wire communications, this system worked as Bristol was 10 minutes behind London, for example.
However, the rise of the railway and a need for standard time would mean a standard time was introduced and the UK was brought to the same time, which was the London time. This would lead the way towards clocks going backwards and forwards depending on the season.
But Bristol time can still be seen today on the Corn Exchange as a subtle nod to the independence of Bristolians. The city is perhaps the only place in the UK which has an affinity with local time.
The Plimsoll bust in the Harbourside
The bust to Samuel Plimsoll has a mysterious past as no one knows who really created it, or whether it is of Mr Plimsoll himself.
(Image: Bristol Live)
Amongst several busts and statues in the Harbourside sits the Samuel Plimsoll bust. Located opposite the SS Great Britain, the bust is potentially 150 years old and celebrates the Bristolian’s achievements as a MP for Derby, or does it?
During the 1960s, the bust was installed on Hotwells Wharf before later being moved into the Harbourside on Capricorn Quay, in Hotwells. But question marks remain over whether the bust depicts Mr Plimsoll, due to the sculptor of the bust being unknown and the length of time it was hidden in the art gallery before being installed.
What we do know is that Mr Plimsoll fought to introduce the Plimsoll line into law, where ships had to have a maximum weight on ships and a safe load line, painted red, became commonplace. Samuel Plimsoll’s name would be deep rooted into Bristol culture after the Plimsoll Swing Bridge was also named after the former MP.
The decaying Hotwells Wharf
Hotwells Wharf is now in a derelict state and close to falling apart.
(Image: PAUL GILLIS / Reach PLC)
The Plimsoll bust remains in decent shape today, the Hotwells Wharf sadly is not. A former part of what we now know as the Harbourside, the wharf sits opposite the now defunct Clifton Rocks Railway in the Avon Gorge.
The tattered wharf with broken boards is deemed unsafe to members of the public, but old Victorian lights remain on the abandoned wharf. Once a popular spot, due to its location near the former Hotwells railway station, the wharf would fall into disrepair once the A4 Portway was established.
The implementation of the Plimsoll bust would not be able to save the former wharf from crumbling even further and now Hotwells Wharf is gated off. The wharf is a memory of Bristol’s maritime past, but unlike the Harbourside, remains in the past.
The Tram Railway Monument commemorating World War II
A piece of the tramline landed within the churchyard at St Mary Redcliffe, on Good Friday in 1941, and has remained in place ever since.
(Image: PAUL GILLIS / Reach PLC)
As bombs fell on Bristol during the Bristol Blitz, the city was changed forever and many lives were lost. However, a forgotten landmark commemorates the near miss that a historic church near the city centre had.
The Tram Railway Monument is quite simply a piece of tram railway that sticks up from the courtyard of St Mary Redcliffe. On April 11 1941, a bomb dropped onto Redcliffe Hill launching the tram rail within the churchyard.
Quite remarkably, St Mary Redcliffe would only sustain minor damage during the war, and as a result the tram railway was left in its place to remind residents of the narrow miss the church had. It is a reminder of the tragedy that was thrust over Bristol.
The former Whitchurch Airport
Part of the runway remains today but could soon disappear altogether as housing developments take shape.
(Image: PAUL GILLIS / Reach PLC)
At one point in time, three airports served the city of Bristol. In 1957, Bristol Filton Airport was to the north of the city, Bristol (Lulsgate) Airport to the south and Bristol (Whitchurch) Airport just three miles from the city centre.
Bristol (Whitchurch) Airport opened in 1930 after the-then city council bought 298 acres of farmland. The location of the airport, being surrounded by housing estates, meant that it could not be expanded and in 1957 it was closed as Lulsgate opened.
Today, parts of the runway remain but for not much longer as a housing plan has been earmarked for the area. The former airport turned racetrack turned park is now home to the South Bristol Community Hospital and part of the former airport is now the base for Hengrove Leisure Park.
Hengrove Leisure Park
The former cinema at Hengrove Leisure Park, as the entrance to the 14-screened complex is boarded up.
(Image: PAUL GILLIS / Reach PLC)
But the South Bristol leisure park is also about to disappear as a housing plan is set to take over the former entertainment park. In its heydey, the likes of Cineworld, Gala Bingo and a number of restaurants would ply their trade.
Today, the leisure park is eerie and mostly abandoned. The leisure park was a crucial part of the BS13 regeneration but the sight of the empty buildings is a sad reminder that time does move on.
Hengrove Leisure Park will live on to a degree as fast food outlets and a Premier Inn hotel will remain on site. But it means that another fragment of the former Whitchurch Airport will be slowly forgotten.
The site of the former Aust Ferry
The view of the former Aust ferry. Looking straight ahead you can still see the old slip road and in the background the Severn Bridge.
(Image: Bristol Live)
The M48 Severn Bridge would prove the final nail in the coffin for the Aust Ferry. Running for 40 years (with a previous history as a steam ferry in the 1800s), the ferry service would transport cars from Aust to Beachley.
The site of the ferry crossing has been abandoned and is decaying, but many of the features of the former crossing can be seen. The original road remains in place up to the slip road, which can be seen from both sides of the river Severn.
The crossing would close a day before the Severn Bridge opened in 1966, but is a unique footnote in the history of the river. Aust Ferry was also known for providing a turntable for vehicles once they had boarded the boat due to the difficulty of entering and exiting the ferry.
The ruins of a chapel on an island below the M48
The island, which has had several names over the years, is home to the ruins of a historic chapel.
(Image: Bristol Live)
The Aust Ferry isn’t the only piece of history hidden below the Severn Bridge. Chapel Rock, located on the Beachley side of the river Severn, is home to ruins of a 13th century chapel.
Also known as St Twrogg’s Island, St Tecla’s Island and Treacle Island, the chapel seen today is not the original chapel that was on the island. The ruins reveal two of the walls and the remains of a round-arched doorway.
Amidst these ruins is a solar-powered signal tower and it is tricky to reach the island by foot. But the island was once home to a holy well which was reputed for its healing powers, although scant evidence remains.
The forgotten Brunel relics – two massive boulders
The Apple Stone is a forgotten Brunel relic which was obtained when tunnels were created, linking Bristol to London.
(Image: PAUL GILLIS / Reach PLC)
Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s legacy over Bristol can not be understated. As a result of this, relics can fall under the radar from time to time. St Anne’s Park station, a former station which is long-gone, was the site of two massive boulders which became known as Brunel relics.
The Apple Stone and Pear Stone were removed from the tunnels in 1837 when constructing the tunnels which would form the Great Western Railway Tunnel No.1. The story of the boulders remains to be confirmed, but one account suggests that the Apple Stone was preserved due to a man’s tragic death.
In any case, Brunel preserved the boulders and put onto a plinth near the site of the tunnel and later moved to a garden at the University of Bristol. The stones were given to the university in 1983. The boulders are largely ignored today by students who wander by without a second gaze, perhaps showing that there is always a hidden story in Bristol.
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