Bristol UK Postcards - Wartime Quotes Series (2)
Bristol Cathedral
This unused postcard has the printed text...
11830
Printed in Great Britain
"This is a time for everyone to
stand to-gether and hold firm."
The Prime Minister
I have another copy of this postcard that has the quote...
"We have to gain the Victory.
That is our task."
The Observatory
This unused postcard has the printed text...
13571
Printed in Gt. Britain
"We shall continue steadfast in
faith and duty till our task is done."
The Prime Minister
I have another copy of this postcard that has the quote...
"This is a time for everyone to stand to-gether and hold firm."
The Observatory was originally built as a Snuff Mill, the windmill was destroyed by fire in 1777, but was rebuilt in 1829 by a Mr West who installed the Camera Obscura in the tower. This is an arrangement of mirrors and lenses that projects an image onto a circular table. By turning a handle different parts of the city can be bought into view, giving a 360-degree, panoramic view. The circular part of the building houses the entrance to the Giant's Cave. This is a passageway that leads to an opening in the face of the gorge. A metal grating lets you walk out a couple of feet into the gorge which can be very disconcerting.
The Observatory stands on the edge of Durdham Downs. This is 180 hectares (422 acres) of park and woodland that sits on top of the gorge. Originally belonging to the Manor of Clifton the land was purchased by the Merchant Venturers in the seventeenth century. In 1861 it was preserved by an Act of Parliament as an open space for the use of the inhabitants of Bristol, forever. Sheep were grazed here until 1924, the owner of the Clifton Down Hotel even complained that the noise of the sheep disturbed his guests.
Wills Memorial Tower of the University of Bristol
To the left can be seen the City Art Gallery and Museum
This unused postcard has the printed text...
13267
Printed in Gt. Britain
"We shall continue steadfast in
faith and duty till our task is done."
The Prime Minister
I have another copy of this postcard that has the quote...
"This is a time for everyone to
stand to-gether and hold firm."
The Prime Minister
At the top of Park Street can be seen the Wills Memorial Tower of the University of Bristol. Officially opened by King George V in 1925, the Wills Tower has been called the last great Gothic building to be constructed in England. It was commissioned and paid for by sons, George Alfred Wills and Henry Herbert Wills, of the first Chancellor of the University, Henry Overton Wills in 1912. It seems unfashionable to mention it nowadays but this is the Wills family of W. D. and H. O. Wills, the giant tobacco company.
This page created 4th December 2009, last modified 10th February 2010
