Broad Street, Bristol

Bristol mapbox
latitude=51.456313
longitude=-2.596605
caption=Shown within Bristol and the UK

Broad Street, along with High Street, Wine Street and Corn Street, is one of the four original streets that have made up the city of Bristol since Saxon times, when it was the village of Brigstow.

Prior to the building of The Exchange merchants would set up their stalls on Broad Street. An old city gate stands at the bottom of Broad Street. [http://www.bristol-link.co.uk/history/old-city.htm The Old City, St Nicholas Markets, Corn Street and The Nails at Bristol-Link.co.uk]

Notable Architecture

Going downhill from the junction with Corn Street, other notable buildings include a former branch of the Bank of England designed by
Charles R Cockrell in Greek Doric style, the Thistle Bristol Hotel by Foster and Wood in Italian Renaissance, the Guildhall in Gothic style by Richard Shackleton Pope and the Art Nouveau Edward Everard printing works. [ http://www.bristolreads.com/downloads/walking_guides/victorian_bristol.doc Brunel 200 - Victorian Bristol from the Great Reading Adventure website]

The printing works features a mural designed by W J Neatby depicting Gutenburg and William Morris, the founders of modern printing; a woman holding objects to represnt Light and Truth and the spirit of Literature. It is made from marble tiles.

t John's Gate

St John's Gate, which stands at the bottom of the street, is the last remaining part of the city wall, with Church of St John the Baptist built above it. The two side passages were created in the 1820s. Niches in the wall contain the figures Brennus and Belinus, according to legend they founded the city. Nearby St John's Conduit was originally built for the friary of the Carmelites but also supplied the people of Brandon Hill. The parishioners were allowed to use only the overflow from the system, and they took advantage of this again during the events of World War II.

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