Help wanted :-
Every now and then I get emails from people who would like further information on specific questions they have about Bristol. I've gathered these together and they are now on the Help Wanted pages, please pay this page a visit and contact me if you know anything at all about them.
Bristol - A history and a Guide
This is my history and guide to my home city - Bristol. I hope you enjoy it as Bristol is one of the best cities in the world.
A good place to start would be to tell you where we are . . .
Bristol is situated 120 miles west of London, England. If you are interested the city centre is located at Lat. 51:27:15 Long. 2:35:12. and at Ordnance Survey co-ordinates 359249 173007
Map showing Bristol in relation to some major UK cities
Here's an interesting fact about the UK - Everyone lives within 60 miles of the coast.
Map showing Bristol and some major surrounding cities and towns.
The area bounded by the mauve rectangle is shown in the satellite photograph below.
To give you some idea of the scale of this map the distance between Bristol and Bath is 15 miles
Satellite photo of the area around Bristol
If you would like to see more detailed maps then go to my links page
Bristol has a population of around 376,000
Satellite photo of Bristol
Each side of this map is about 10 miles long.
| A1 | Nightingale Valley | B1 | Abbots Leigh | C1 | Ashton Court | D1 | Bower Ashton |
| E1 | Ashton Vale | F1 | Ashton Gate | G1 | Bedminster | H1 | Bedminster Down |
| I1 | Highridge | J1 | Withywood | K1 | Bishopsworth | L1 | Hartcliffe |
| M1 | Headley Park | N1 | Novers Hill | O1 | Windmill Hill | P1 | Totterdown |
| Q1 | Filwood Park | R1 | Knowle | S1 | Hengrove | T1 | Whitchurch |
| U1 | Stockwood | V1 | Brislington | W1 | Arno's Vale | X1 | Broomhill |
| Y1 | Saint Annes | Z1 | Barton Hill | A2 | Easton | B2 | Whitehall |
| C2 | Saint George | D2 | Crews Hole | E2 | Conham | F2 | Longwell Green |
| G2 | Somerdale | H2 | Willsbridge | I2 | Oldland | J2 | Cadbury Heath |
| K2 | Warmley | L2 | Hanham | M2 | Kingswood | N2 | Two Mile Hill |
| O2 | Speedwell | P2 | Fishponds | Q2 | Eastville | R2 | Stapleton |
| S2 | Staple Hill | T2 | Mangotsfield | U2 | Downend | V2 | Frenchay |
| W2 | Hambrook | X2 | Harry Stoke | Y2 | Stoke Gifford | Z2 | Bradley Stoke |
| A3 | Patchway | B3 | Filton | C3 | Lockleaze | D3 | Horfield |
| E3 | Ashley Down | F3 | Montpelier | G3 | Cotham | H3 | Redland |
| I3 | Westbury Park | J3 | Bishopston | K3 | Golden Hill | L3 | Henleaze |
| M3 | Eastfield | N3 | Southmead | O3 | Brentry | P3 | Henbury |
| Q3 | Westbury on Trym | R3 | Coombe Dingle | S3 | Kings Weston | T3 | Lawrence Weston |
| U3 | Avonmouth | V3 | Shirehampton | W3 | Sea Mills | X3 | Stoke Bishop |
| Y3 | Durdham Downs | Z3 | Clifton | A4 | Hotwells | B4 | City Centre |
| C4 | Broadmead | D4 | Saint Pauls | E4 | Saint Werburghs | F4 | Old Market |
Present day Bristol is a conglomeration of the many villages and hamlets that used to surround the original city and have since been swallowed up by it. Usually, but not always, all that has survived are the names of these villages. Hence people still talk of Brislington and Clifton villages.
Incidentally, do you know the difference between a village and a hamlet?
(The answer is at the bottom of the page)
Other useful sites you may like to visit can be found at :-
Old English Weights, Measures and Coinage
While I was writing this I realised that some of the terms I would be using are no longer in common usage, these sites will give more information
Chard Jewellers an excellent site that has much information on the British pre-decimal coinage system
English Weights and Measures
Footrule - pages explaining the old volume / capacity measurements
Jaques Proot - pages explaining all sorts of old measurements
Paul Lewis - a page explaining the old British pre-decimal coinage system
United Kingdom
Association of British Counties
The Counties of England
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch at the BBC
UK placenames
Other pages in this section...
Place Names
Legends, Pre-history and the Romans
Birth of the City
1100 Onwards - Norman Times, Knights Templar, King John, New Frome and Bristol Bridge, Three Edwards, Trade Guilds and the Red Books, The Plague and
after, The New Charters - we become a County, the Cathedral, St. Mary Redcliffe
Voyages
1450 Onwards - The War of the Roses, Social Life, Queen Elizabeth I's visit, the Great House, Red Lodge, America and other Colonies, The Civil War -
Causes
1650 Onwards - The Civil War, Charles II, Growing City, Diarists, Religious quarrels, Monmouth's Rebellion, The Bloody Assize, The Duke and Duchess,
The Slave Trade, Other Trade and Industries
1700 Onwards - Social Life, Prisons, Relief for the Poor, Education, News, George Whitefield, the Wesleys and Methodism, Prisoners of War and Manor
Park Hospital, The Industrial Revolution, cast iron, the roads, lead shot, postal services. Dr Tucker, Edmund Burke, Joseph Cottle and the poets, Humphry Davy
Riots (Page 1) Food Riot - 1709, Political Riot -1714, Weavers Riots - 1728 / 1729, Turnpike Riots - 1727 - 1749, Food Riot - 1753, Bristol Bridge
Riot - 1793, Political Reform Riot - 1831
Riots (Page 2) G.I. Riot - 1944, Political Riot -1980
The Blitz (Page 1) - The WWII bomb raids on Bristol
The Blitz (Page 2)
The Castle (Page 1) - The Norman Conquest, Robert Fitzhamon and Robert of Caen, Matilda, Maud and Stephen
The Castle (Page 2) - King Richard I and King John, Taxes, The Mint, Wales
The Castle (Page 3) - Peter de la Mare, Edward II, The Despensers, Death of Edward II, William Scrope, War of the Roses, Wyrcester's Account of
the Castle, More Taxes
The Castle (Page 4) - Religious Dissent, Civil War, The End of the Castle, Remains
The Castle (Page 5) - Remains
The Castle (Page 6) - Remains, Sources
Blaise Castle (Page 1)
Blaise Castle (Page 2) - including Sea Mills and Blaise Hamlet
Castle Green (Page 1) - including Victoria Street
Castle Green (Page 2)
Union Street - Fry's chocolate & excavations of a medieval site
Broadmead - John Wesley's Chapel, Merchant Tailors Almshouse and Quakers Friars
The Old City (Page 1)
The Old City (Page 2)
The Old City (Page 3)
The Old City (Page 4)
Christmas Steps (Page 1)
Christmas Steps (Page 2)
St. Mary Redcliffe (Page 1)
St. Mary Redcliffe (Page 2)
St. Mary Redcliffe (Page 3)
College Green (Page 1)
College Green (Page 2)
King Street (Page 1)
King Street (Page 2)
Clifton (Page 1)
Clifton (Page 2) - St. Andrew's Church
Avon Gorge (Page 1) - Leigh Woods, Stokeleigh Camp, Nightingale Valley, Suspension Bridge, Suicides
Avon Gorge (Page 2) - Suspension Bridge, Flying
Avon Gorge (Page 3) - Rock Slide, Observatory, Camera Obscura, Giant's Cave
Hotwells (Page 1) - Clifton Rocks Railway, the Hotwell
Hotwells (Page 2) - Samuel Plimsoll, the Floating Harbour
City Docks (Page 1)
City Docks (Page 2)
City Docks (Page 3)
Bedminster (Page 1) - The New Cut, Old gaol
Bedminster (Page 2) - Police Station, Pubs, Bristol Blue Glass
Bedminster (Page 3)
Bedminster (Page 4)
Bedminster (Page 5)
Bedminster (Page 6)
Bedminster (Page 7)
Old Market (Page 1)
Old Market (Page 2)
St. George (Page 1)
St. George (Page 2)
St. George (Page 3)
St. George (Page 4) - Old Georgians
Temple (Page 1)
Temple (Page 2)
Temple (Page 3)
Arno's Vale Cemetery (Page 1)
Arno's Vale Cemetery (Page 2)
Brislington
@ Bristol
Oldest House
I. K. Brunel (Page 1) - Bristol Suspension Bridge, Temple Meads, Great Western Railways
I. K. Brunel (Page 2) - SS Great Western, SS Great Britain
Ma Pugsley
Yeamans - An important 17th century family
Boundaries (Page 1)
Boundaries (Page 2)
Photography
Polar Adventures
Seals, Arms and Logos (Page 1)
Seals, Arms and Logos (Page 2)
1893 Exhibition (Page 1) - The 1893 Industrial and Fine Arts Exhibition
1893 Exhibition (Page 2)
Lead Working
Historical Perspective
Bristol Postcards
Virtute et Industrial
Other Sites
Bibliography (Page 1)
Bibliography (Page 2)
Bibliography (Page 3)
Help Wanted (Page 1)
Help Wanted (Page 2)
Help Wanted (Page 3)
(A village has a church and a hamlet hasn't.)
