Bristol in the Post-War Period

An interesting view of Park Street in the 1950’s, which has stayed remarkably unchanged in modern times, except for the shop in the middle right of the picture, which has since lost its canopy with the hanging sun blinds. To the left of this shop, and just across Unity Street, are the two premises which were destroyed by a gas explosion in the mid-1970’s, one of which still remains to be rebuilt! To the right of this shop, and partly out of camera-shot, stands the mediaeval Lord Mayor’s Chapel (1220), the only municipally-owned chapel in the United Kingdom. On the right pier of the Great West Window, unfortunately just out-of-view, is an old sundial, which sadly is in need of repainting. Contained therein are the City Regalia, including the Municipal Sword-of-State (1752), and several maces of a similar period. Partially out-of-view on the left edge of this photograph is the right portico of the Council House. The two buildings to the right of the Council House form the Avery Wine Bar complex, the taller of which is the Mauritania Wine Bar, so named due to it being furnished with the fine wood panelling taken from the ocean liner of the same name, when its sailing days were over. Also of interest is the animated neon sign (not easily seen in this view) on the facing wall of this taller building, depicting the famous liner, which is thought to be the oldest in Bristol. The pavement to the further edge of the grassed area on the lower right of this view now plays host to several shelters for outward-bound buses. At the top of Park Street stands the splendid Neo-gothic University Tower, the magnum opus of architect Sir George H. Oatley (1863-1950) who was also responsible for the St. Monica’s Homes of Rest on the Downs, and the Bedminster Police Station (now sadly in a neglected state), as well as overseeing the rebuilding of the spire of St. Mary Redcliffe, and many of the other earlier buildings of the fledgling Bristol University, which was founded in 1876.