The Dutch Dwelling this seventeenth century setting up when stood on the corner of Wine Street it was reduced to a charred skeleton and for safety’s sake it experienced to be pulled down.

The Dutch Dwelling was Bristol’s best-recognised landmark in advance of the Blitz. By 1732 it was the residence of John Vaughan, a goldsmith, in 1810 it grew to become the Castle Financial institution, in 1826 the Stuckey’s Financial institution and by 1855 it was occupied by Mr Tilly the Hatter (he 1st named it Dutch Dwelling nevertheless it has no connection with Holland).

In 1908 it was saved from demolition by the Lord Mayor’s casting vote. Through the thirties it housed the Irish Linen and Hosiery Association but was pulled down right after being seriously bombed in 1940.

Extracts from the Western Daily Push Bristol From seventh June 1940 to 16th August 1944

June twenty five 1940

Soon right after midnight the 1st H.E. bomb fell amid a handful of previous houses and shops close to Champion & Davies’ manufacturing unit in Lower Maudlin Street. The manufacturing unit alone, which was being utilized as a Pink Cross depot, was hit by a further bomb. A further more attack was made on Knowle about one.30 a.m. and bombs also fell in elements of St. George and Bedminster.

Districts afflicted had been predominantly St. Philip’s, St. Paul’s and Brislington. Goal of this raid was potentially Temple Meads Station as nine H.E’s fell on railway home – two failed to explode. Other unexploded bombs had been found at Temple Gate and Victoria Street. Bristol’s 1st air raid lasted from twelve.ten a.m. right up until two.35. 5 people had been killed, fourteen seriously injured and 19 marginally injured.

September seven 1940

Whilst there was no ‘red’ warning, five bombs had been dropped during the day close to Bristol Cathedral, a person producing a direct hit on the Cathedral School, injuring the Headmaster (the Rev. H. A. Watts).

September twenty five 1940

The Luftwaffe’s aim was the Bristol Aeroplane Operates: flying in virtually ideal development they arrived more than the town at eleven.forty, made straight for the will work, and identified them absolutely at their mercy. In forty five terror-stuffed seconds they permit loose 168 bombs, leading to a substantial demise-roll and a great deal havoc. Blenheims, Beauforts and Beaufighters had been being made at the B.A.C. at the time, and although the German Information Company place out the declare, ‘This manufacturing unit will not deliver many a lot more aircraft’, in genuine actuality only eight planes had been so seriously ruined as to be irreparable.

September 27 1940

On this day, two days right after the devastating assaults on the Aeroplane Operates, the Germans arrived more than with the same intentions. At about eleven.30 a drive of about nine bombers, accompanied by fighters, arrived more than the town, but a squadron of Hurricanes was ready for them. A.A. guns had been in motion as nicely, and the development was dispersed in advance of it could achieve its target. Regardless of the risk, crowds of people arrived out in the streets to view the ‘dog fights’ using spot in the sky.

November 24 1940

At 6.21 the sirens blared their warning. They did not audio ‘Raiders Passed’ right up until eight minutes past midnight – almost 6 several hours of slaughter, desolation and damage. As shortly as the raiders arrived more than, the skies had been illuminated by the incandescent glare of scores of flares. In a issue of seconds, incendiaries and substantial explosives hurtled down to earth. It was later on reckoned that sixty enemy planes had been dependable for lying waste to so a great deal of the town. Their tactics appeared to be to fly more than the town two or three at a time at normal intervals to unleash their cargo of demise and destruction.

The the vast majority of the bombs had been incendiary, including a new type of explosive incendiary, but they had been not without their quota of substantial explosives. Some had been of an really massive calibre, as could be judged by the substantial craters in Thomas Street and Wells Street. Totterdown.

The heart of the town from Wide Quay to Previous Market bore the brunt of the raid, specially St James’s Barton and St. Philip’s and in Clifton, Bedminster, Knowle, and St. George. The intensity of the raid can be gauged by the adhering to summary of the greater-recognised properties and streets which had been wrecked.

They provided the Museum, and portion of the Artwork Gallery a portion of the College, including the Great Hall, the Princes Theatre St Anselm’s Church Clifton Parish Church the Preparatory School of Bristol Grammar School and Freemason’s Hall. Procuring districts presented scenes of in-describable desolation – Lennards’ properties and many premises in Queen’s Street grew to become absolutely nothing a lot more than heaps of rubble, whilst on possibly aspect of Park Street scarcely a store was still left intact.

Shops in University Environmentally friendly and a variety of premises in Canons’ Marsh, also, had been demolished, But it was the centre of the town which endured the worst: from Marsh Street and Nicholas Street, Superior Street, Bridge Street, Mary-le-Port Street, Wine Street, Castle Street, Union Street, and Broadmead (some of these streets had been totally wrecked), Barr Street, the Barton, and Stokes Croft, Such nicely-recognised properties as the Previous Dutch Dwelling, the Fish Market, SI, Nicholas Church, St. Peter’s Clinic (one of a kind and lovely Elizabethan setting up), St. Peter’s Church, Mary-le-Port Church, the Higher Arcade, portion of the Bristol Club, and quite a few of the previous Almshouses, had been amid individuals demolished.

Most of the well known shops in Wine Street and Castle Street had been absolutely wiped out, Major destruction was sustained in Redcliff Street, Victoria Street and St. Thomas Street, and E. S. & A, Robinson, Mardon Son & Hall, and Bennett Bros, had been heavily battered.

Historic Temple Church was wrecked, but its famous leaning tower withstood the bombs as a testimony to the masonry of 800 several years back. Problems to houses in Knowle was popular Holy Nativity Church was burnt out, and interference to industry was done by destruction to the British Oxygen Co. and John Lysaght Ltd. In all, 337 unexploded bombs or suspected bombs had been noted, and as a final result of assessment, a hundred seventy five unexploded bombs had been noted to the Bomb Disposal Unit.

In a raid of this sort of intensity, it is tough to form an estimate of all bombs dropped on the town. The German communique preserved that three hundred tons of substantial explosive and ten,000 incendiaries had been produced by their bombers, but a a lot more conservative estimate would be one thing underneath one,000 substantial explosive and 5,000 incendiary bombs.

The formal casualty record was 200 killed, 163 seriously injured, and 526 marginally hurt, Seventy-7 brigades had been sent into the town from outdoors, and twenty,000 feet of hose was attained from Cardiff, Newport, Bournemouth and Plymouth. In just 30 minutes of the warning, 897 portion-time staff of the A.F.S. noted for obligation. 8 auxiliary firemen misplaced their lives in the raid.

The Army, Royal Engineers and Infantry shortly arrived ahead to give their support, and they had been busily engaged in demolition, clearance, site visitors handle and housing repairs. On a person day there had been 830 troops so used. The moment yet again the hostels scheme was place into procedure, and on this night time two,087 people had been admitted to them.

In twelve days, 70,294 meals had been served at the 39 hostels. The blanket inventory at St. Peter’s Clinic was wrecked, but on the night time of the adhering to day, one,five hundred blankets experienced been attained and 3,700 had been accessible by the night time of the 26th.

Problems to the utility services handicapped feeding preparations and communal meals had been inaugurated. It is estimated that, apart from industrial properties, no much less than ten,000 houses had been ruined in some diploma.

By the middle of the 7 days two,000 guys had been engaged on repairs. Between the nicely-recognised properties which had been ruined, in addition to individuals already stated, had been: St. Mary Redcliffe (marginally), St. Nicholas and Clifton Parish Church (wrecked). Previous properties in Mary-Ie-Port Street, Dr. White’s Almshouses in Temple Street and Almshouses in North Street, Long Row, and King Street, and Georgian houses in Charlotte Street and Berkeley Square.

December two 1940

Bristol’s next significant air raid started out at sixteen minutes past 6 and lasted right up until eleven o’clock. The Bishop’s Palace was absolutely burned out, and the Children’s Clinic, St. Michael’s Hill was hit, but thankfully the personnel had been able to evacuate the kids to the Homoeopathic Clinic, without harm. Welsh Back was hit and portion of the Quayside demolished. Budgett’s massive warehouse in Nelson Street, which experienced been ruined in a prior raid, was absolutely wrecked.

The northern half of Portland Square was burned out, whilst in Rosemary Street the Dockland Settlement was wrecked. A massive calibre bomb wrecked a wardens’ post in Dean Street, St. Paul’s, burying thirteen people underneath the particles, and the police headquarters in Bridewell was hit. At Hill’s shipyard at Cumberland Street, the s.s. Bristol Town was hit, A further bomb fell on W. D. & H. . Wills’ No.one manufacturing unit, harming ten devices, but generation ongoing.

Formal casualty figures had been 156 killed, 149 seriously injured, and 121 marginally injured, Rescue parties made 66 phone calls, from which they rescued 135 folks alive and recovered 117 bodies, In the 1st hour, fifty five fires had been noted – in all there had been 167. A whole of one,518 entire-time and portion-time firemen fought the flames, two of them getting rid of their lives.

December 6 1940

Bristol’s 3rd significant air raid in just a fortnight started just right after half-past 6 and lasted right up until eleven.28. The Council Dwelling, Assize Courtroom, G.P.O., Merchants’ Hall, Seamen’s Institute, and Corn Exchange had been amid the nicely-recognised properties in the town which sustained significant destruction. Water-carts, now starting to be a lot more acquainted with each raid, appeared in the streets.

Between factories demolished or terribly ruined had been: Distillers (of Cheese Lane), Bennett Bros (at Counterslip), and Steel Agencies (at Welsh Back and Queen Charlotte Street), whilst fire triggered appreciable destruction to the British Oxygen Company’s premises, Parnall’s aircraft will work at Barton Hill, and John Lysaght & Co. 1 of the worst incidents of the raid was at Temple Meads, exactly where a substantial-explosive bomb struck the station platform alongside the seven.ten train from Bristol to Salisbury. The train was derailed, two coaches had been ruined and casualties had been weighty.

Casualty figures for this raid had been: 100 killed, eighty seriously and 108 marginally injured. December sixteen 1940 The King arrived down to Bristol and saw for himself the war-scarred town and the undaunted spirit of its citizens. As the then Lord Mayor (Help. T. H. J. Underdown) reported the King showed abounding sympathy with the people of the town. His mindset was what the Lord Mayor termed, a person of ‘man to man’. Queen Mary also made a tour of welfare centres in the afternoon.

January 3 – 4 1941

In this virtually dusk-to-dawn attack, the Civil Defence services experienced a further foe to fight—frost. The night time was a person of winter’s bitterest. The lot of the fire fighters was maybe worst. As drinking water streamed from their jets substantial icicles shaped on the properties, and excellent sheets of ice on the roadways extra to the plight of individuals bravely attempting to quench the fires.

Up to now this was the city’s longest raid – lasting accurately twelve several hours. Really early on, it was obvious that Temple Meads and the Town Docks experienced been earmarked by the raiders for specific interest. The earlier wave of bombers showered incendiaries predominantly alongside a line operating westwards from Temple Meads. At the station the properties adjoining platforms nine and twelve had been shortly ablaze, and the most important reserving place of work, telegraph place of work, refreshment place and the clock tower had been practically wrecked. In the town, store premises in Bridge and Superior Streets which experienced not been wrecked in prior raids had been possibly demolished absolutely or ruined really terribly.

Structures in Queen Square, Welsh Back, Wide Quay, Nelson Street and Redcliff Street had been amid the many which had been battered. Quite a few a lot more important properties had been wrecked, including the Corporation granary at Prince’s Wharf, which was stocked with 8,000 tons of grain Steel Agencies (south aspect of Queen Square), and St. Augustine’s Church, Problems was also done to the Bristol Common Clinic, and the Homoeopathic, Warmer’s Meals Outlets, Hill’s dock workplaces, Chamber of Commerce, Guildhall, and the Town Treasurer’s place of work, as nicely as to a amount of merchants and sheds adjoining the Town Docks.

It was estimated that about two,five hundred houses had been ruined. Casualty figures had been: 149 dead, 133 seriously injured and 218 marginally wounded. It was in this raid that the Germans dropped their most important bomb on the town – ‘Satan’, a 4,000-lb. monster, which fell at Beckington Street, Knowle. Measuring 8 ft. It in. long, without the tail, and two ft. two ins, in diameter, it fortunately did not explode.

When the Bomb Disposal Unit recovered it in April 1943, they experienced to dig down 29~ ft. ‘Satan’ rode in the Victory Parade via London the really last approach the Germans could have imagined of for its disposal.

March sixteen-17 1941

Of all Bristol’s important air assaults this was maybe the worst. Casualty figures had been larger on this night time than at any time during the war – 257 killed and 391 injured.

The raid started just in advance of 8.30 p.m., and right after a lot more than five several hours, the ‘Raiders Passed’ was sounded. Individuals heaved a sigh of reduction, but they experienced barely time to obtain on their own, for in 10 minutes the raid started anew and ongoing unabated right up until twelve minutes past 4 in the morning. Bombing was weighty and persistent, and a great deal of the centre of the town which experienced been fortunate more than enough to escape destruction in prior raids endured severely.

The districts of Whitehall, Eastville and Fishponds had been most afflicted and Easton, St. Paul’s, Montpelier and Kingsdown. St. Michael’s Church was set on fire. At the time some three hundred people had been sheltering in the crypt. but all escaped unharmed. St. Barnabas Church crypt experienced a direct hit, and fifteen bodies had been subsequently found. Concerning 700 and 800 substantial-explosive and quite a few 1000’s of incendiary bombs arrived down upon Bristol.

April nine-ten 1941

Bombs had been dropped on Avonmouth, exactly where the cinema was wrecked a bomb terribly ruined Union House—the G.P.O. Telephones administrative offices— and adjoining shops a further demolished Oliver Pragnall & Co’s oil and paint premises in Broadmead.

In Newfoundland Street two substantial-explosives wrecked Purnell’s vinegar will work and St. Clement’s Church. April eleven/twelve 1941 Usually talked about as the ‘Good Friday raid’ this was the sixth and ultimate massive-scale attack on Bristol, In it one hundred eighty people died, 146 seriously wounded and 236 other people gained slight accidents. Incendiaries and substantial explosives had been dropped by waves of planes right after they experienced damaged via a significantly weighty anti-aircraft barrage soon right after ten o’clock.

Bombing ongoing for about an hour and three-quarters most of the bombs straddling a north and south line from Bristol Bridge to Horfield. At 7 minutes to midnight the sirens sent out their message, ‘Raiders Passed’. 13 minutes afterwards the enemy had been overhead when a lot more. They did not leave right up until 3.fifty two a.m. Quite a few fires started in the 1st raid, the biggest being the burning of the Community Library in Cheltenham Street, and the Colston Girls’ School opposite. Superior-explosives fell predominantly in Horfield and Higher Easton close to Lawrence Hill Station.

In the next raid, many bombs fell all over Prince Street, Wide Quay and Queen’s Square. The Corporation Electrical power Workplaces in Colston Avenue had been wrecked by fire. St. Augustine’s district endured heavily in Canon’s Marsh. Anchor Street, Park Row and Hotwells. Great fires sprung up at Taylor’s in University Environmentally friendly and the Coliseum in Park Row.

Bedminster: Many fires broke out in the Victoria Street place and St. Philip’s Bridge was demolished. Electrical power – destruction was done to a substation at Temple Back and also to the most important cable at St. Philip’s Bridge. Other properties not beforehand stated which had been ruined or wrecked, provided: St. Paul’s Church, Bedminster St. Peter’s Parish Hall, Jacob’s Wells properties at the corner of Union Street and Broadmead fire station, Ashley Down Street Bristol South Baths.

Not many several hours right after this assault, the Prime Minister compensated a go to to the bomb-scarred town, saw what havoc experienced been wrought, and grimly promised the enemy ‘We will give it them back’.

August 28 1942

Of all the single acts of frightfulness recorded versus the Luftwaffe on this town, maybe the most dreadful of them all happened on this day. At nine.twenty in the morning, when the town was likely about its enterprise, a person horrible blow was struck, without warning. Flying at more than twenty,000 feet, a German fighter-bomber aimed a five hundred-lb. bomb at the heart of the town.

It struck Wide Weir close to the junction of Philadelphia Street. exploded on impact, and triggered dreadful destruction. Worst of all, three buses loaded with travellers had been set on fire instantaneously. Of individuals who misplaced their lives, many had been girls, but quite a few kids too had been trapped in the blazing automobiles.

Irrespective of their prompt arrival, the fire services could do little by then the ‘buses had been just twisted chassis. There was no time to give any warning, it all happened so suddenly. The casualties totalled forty five killed, 26 seriously wounded, and 30 with slight accidents. It was the most important demise-roll of any single incident. Problems was done to the thoroughfare, and to the 16th-century gabled building’s of Taylor’s, the printers in Wide Weir. Amid this single tragedy, its horror and pathos long remembered, the stoicism of the Bristol people was typified by two of them – a guy and a female, The latter, 93 several years of age, was identified sitting down in her kitchen area very unconcerned, with portion of her little store in ruins.

All she wished from her rescuers was a glass of drinking water. And the guy? His household was about to collapse at any instant, but he would insist on likely back again into it to obtain his life’s savings.

May possibly fifteen 1944

The last entry in the formal report of the Struggle of Bristol. This was the last scene in the last act of a drama that experienced lasted virtually 4 several years set in a wounded town which experienced bravely lived up to a proud and distinguished past its players, humble citizens, whose gallantry and fortitude will be an illustration for all time.

On this night time, 10 substantial-explosives fell, weighing more than thirteen,000 lbs. Two had been dropped in Kings-Weston Lane, and a Serviceman was killed at a Searchlight web-site. He was the only casualty in this ultimate raid. In Bedminster, three descended close to St. Peter’s Increase and Gifford’s Hill, harming quite a few houses on each sides of the town boundary, and the other five had been noted at Abbot’s Leigh in the Somerset No.one place.

At 7 minutes past three in the morning, the ‘Raiders Passed’ was sounded, the German bombers experienced turned tail for household. And they hardly ever arrived back again – Bristol’s ordeal was more than. ‘Now it was Germany’s turn to really feel the entire drive of the blitz’.

Posted by brizzle born and bred on 2007-eleven-twenty fifteen:05:35

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