The Changing Face of Bristol & its People

Two photographs depicting the same view, one taken a period of time after the other, give us an instantaneous impression of ' then ' and 'now '. Some comparisons show old views that are instantly recognisable, where the natural passage of time and technology has made only slight changes. Other views illustrate major change and it can be difficult to comprehend that an area has altered so much. Unless you have lived through a change and can remember what was there before, there is often no reason to question what building was replaced or how the area functioned in the past.

Bristol Then and Now - Baldwin Street - 1906 - 2004

Baldwin Street derives its name from St Baldwin's Cross, an ancient shrine, or from Baldwin's Cross Mill, which existed before the river Frome was diverted from the line of the street into St Augustine's Reach in medieval times.

There was also a tract of land granted to one Baldwin Albis, way back in 1160, so its just possible that the street name could be derived from him. The 'Then' photograph above, was taken in 1906, shows horse-drawn traffic and, of course, a good old Bristol electric tram, trundling along on its way to the Tramway Centre.

On the right, on the corner of St Stephen's Street (named after a church but was once called Fisher Lane after an old fish market once held nearby) can be seen the old Western Daily Press offices, the newspaper's home from 1885 until 1960.

When it came under the Bristol United Press umbrella and production was transferred to the Evening Post's Silver Street premises. Lucky to escape being burnt to the ground in the early months of 1941, the fine building was eventually demolished and replaced by a modern office block. As can be seen in the 'Now' photograph, these offices were refurbished and given a grand new entrance and canopy in 1998.

In 1881, a newer section of the street - for a while named after New Baldwin Street - was cut through from the lower end of Clare Street. The Victorian buildings to the left of the picture were blitzed and not rebuilt until 1956.

BRISTOL THEN AND NOW - BRISLINGTON HILL - 1938 - 2001

THEN - Even in the 1930s Brislington still had a village atmosphere - The historic White Hart Inn on the right was once a coaching inn on the route to Bath - The newsagent was next to the village post office.

NOW - This is the same view 63 years later and is almost unrecognisable from the early picture - The White Hart still remains but this pub now stands on Bristol's busiest road the A4 - This road has major problems coping with the volume of traffic - How times have changed.

BRISTOL THEN AND NOW - BRAGGS LANE - ST JUDES - 1913 - 2001

THEN - Braggs Lane - The building in the centre of the picture was opened in June 1913 in politically incorrect times as the Guild for Brave poor things and was established to help blind and crippled people old or young - At the opening ceremony the Bishop of Bristol modestly remarked that 'they have done more to raise the standard and tone of the district than I have done in my time by putting this beautiful building here' - It changed its name a few year's later to the Guild of the Handicapped and by 1936 was known as Guild Heritage House.

NOW - This road is now a feature of the one-way system from Old Market - The former Guild House is now the Easton area council office.

BRISTOL THEN & NOW - BALDWIN STREET - OCT 1978 - OCT 2004

On September 6. 1991. after a five-month, £2 million rebuild and with a star-spangled VIP launch, the curtain went up on Ritzy’s, a brand new nightspot in Baldwin Street. The building, which started life as the People’s Palace music hail in 1892. Had, of course, been a disco called Busby’s since 1980.

Which is when the old Gaumont cinema, owned by Rank closed. The nightspot redevelopment was the final blow for the much-loved single screen cinema and the older music hall. The 1,250 seats had already been ripped out in 1950 but 11 years later the rest of the old interior was completely gutted and the capacity of the club doubled to take 1.400.

It had six levels, four bars, lasers and a £25,0000 lighting rig. The listed cinema front, which today looks such a mess, was also renovated for the first time since The People’s Palace, run by the well-known Livermore Brothers, had been built on the site of the old Ship and Castle, a long-established pub and place of entertainment.

On its opening night in 1892 the Victorian audience had the choice of comedians, singers, dancers, operetta, ventriloquists, jugglers or animal acts. It was immensely popular and all the big names of the day played there Harry Tate, Marie Lloyd, Harry Lauder, Charlie Chaplin, George Robey the list is endless Variety was the key and Charles Poole's Myriorama (a picture made from various parts that could be combined in different ways) on the loss of the Titanic was the big hit of 1912.

It was that year that music hall ended and the new craze for moving pictures began. According to Horace Livermore, the Palace had been the home of Bristols first cinematograph exhibition by the Lumiere Bros in 1896. Livermore retired in 1920 and sold the Palace to Biocolour Picture Theatres who in turn sold it to Gaumont.

The old building was demolished and the luxurious New Palace. complete with Orchestra, opened in 1928. Talkies soon followed. The New Palace had the first cinema organ in the region and the BBC often broadcast from there. It was re-named the Gaumont in 1952 but closed its doors in 1980.

A victim of the cinema wars which saw so many small picture houses close down. Creation. the last club on the site after Club 10 finished, closed its doors in January and today the building stands empty and forlorn.

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