Inspirations

The history of Blackberry Hill (located in Stapleton and Fishponds, Bristol) spans over two centuries, moving from wartime incarceration to poor relief, healthcare, and modern housing.


• 1779–1783 (Stapleton Prison – American War of Independence): Built originally as a purpose-built prisoner of war camp to hold naval prisoners (largely Spanish and Dutch) landed at Bristol quays.
• 1793–1815 (Napoleonic Wars): Re-opened and expanded as France declared war on Britain, housing thousands of French prisoners of war who constructed additional wings. The original prison shell in Manor Road, the British Garrison Officers’ Mess House, and the Admiralty Agent’s House still stand.
• 1832 (Cholera Hospital): The facility was converted into a cholera hospital during an epidemic outbreak.
• 1837–20th Century (Stapleton Workhouse / Manor Park Hospital): Acquired by the Bristol Corporation of the Poor and converted into a massive workhouse. It later transitioned into a geriatric and general hospital known as Manor Park Hospital.
• 1992–2000s (Blackberry Hill Hospital): Merged with the adjacent Glenside Hospital (the former Bristol Lunatic Asylum) in December 1992, operating psychiatric and forensic mental health services (such as the Fromeside medium-secure unit run by Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership).
• 2009–Present (Redevelopment & Housing): Parts of the site were sold off for regeneration into residential housing, transforming the grim historical footprint into modern developments like the Blackberry Hill housing project by Linden Homes.

Whitefield’s sometimes Whitfield’s Tabernacle is a former Calvinistic Methodist and Congregational (now United Reformed) church in Kingswood, a town on the eastern edge of Bristol where George Whitefield preached in the open air to coal miners. The name refers to two buildings in which the congregation met. The congregation originally met in the New Society Room which was built in 1741 for George Whitefield and John Cennick after a separation occurred between them and John Wesley. The former Society Room building was expanded to a large size in 1802, and is a Grade I listed building. It is now roofless and derelict after an arson attack. In 1851 a very large Gothic building, designed by Henry Masters, was constructed just west of the original tabernacle. Masters Church is Grade II listed. In 1983 this building was closed and the United Reformed Church congregation moved back into the original 18th-century building for a few years, before leaving both buildings to join together for worship with another congregation associated with the 18th-century revival, the Moravian Church, in the Moravian building on the other side of the High Street. The new unified congregation was named United Church Kingswood and continued to worship until it closed in January 2023.

The Bristol and Bath Railway Path is a 13- to 15-mile traffic-free walking and cycling route forming part of National Cycle Route 4. Opening: The route originally opened in 1870 as a branch line of the Midland Railway (the Mangotsfield and Bath branch line) connecting Bristol and Bath. Closure: Passenger services ended in the mid-1960s under the Beeching cuts, though local freight services continued to operate into the early 1970s before the line was completely abandoned. Cyclebag: The idea to repurpose the corridor started with Cyclebag, a Bristol-based cycling advocacy group founded in 1977 to champion safe cycling infrastructure. Launch: Cyclebag officially launched the path project in 1978, recognizing that the disused railway line offered a rare opportunity to link two major cities without building a brand-new transport corridor. The Birth of Sustrans: The project became the foundational launchpad for the cycling charity Sustrans and the wider UK National Cycle Network.
Phase One (1979): Construction officially began in June 1979, with over 300 volunteers contributing roughly 800 days of labor to transform an initial leased 5-to-8-kilometre stretch near Saltford and Bitton into a narrow dust track. Full Opening: The route was gradually expanded, connected, and paved—with the full route officially opening on August 6, 1985 (coinciding with the 150th anniversary of the original railway), and final development work wrapping up by 1986. Surface Upgrades: What started as a narrow voluntary dirt/dust track was eventually widened to a 3-metre (10-foot) fully tarmacked surface from end to end. The path has grown into one of the UK’s most-used active travel corridors, carrying millions of commuter and leisure trips every year. Along the route, users pass notable historical and nature sites including the Staple Hill Tunnel, Mangotsfield Station, the Warmley Waiting Room cafe, the Avon Valley Railway, and the Royate Hill Nature Reserve.

Hanham Hall is a multi-award-winning eco-housing development and historic estate located in South Gloucestershire, near Bristol, England. The Historic Hall: The core of the site is a Grade II listed* stone manor house originally built in 1655 by Richard Jones. Over the centuries, it transitioned through private ownership and later served as a learning disability institution (part of the Stoke Park Colony) under Reverend Harold Burden from 1917 onwards. Zero-Carbon Development: Developed by HTA Design, Barratt Homes, and Sovereign Housing Association (with support from Homes England), Hanham Hall is England’s first large-scale volume housebuilder scheme to achieve the 2016 zero-carbon standard. Housing & Scale: Completed around 2013, the 9-hectare site features 187 homes (a mix of private and affordable housing ranging from 1-bedroom apartments and coach houses to 5-bedroom family houses). Sustainability Features: Includes Kingspan TEK structural insulated panels (SIPs), roof-mounted photovoltaic solar panels, mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) systems, shared-surface roads, and rainwater harvesting. Community Management: Communal spaces, open areas, and sustainable infrastructure are managed by the Hanham Hall Community Interest Company (CIC) alongside residents..

Blaise Castle Estate is a public park near Henbury in Bristol, England. The estate includes Blaise Castle House, a Grade II* listed 18th-century mansion house; Blaise Castle, a Grade II* listed folly built in 1766; and other listed ancillary buildings including an orangery and dairy. Along with Blaise Hamlet, a group of nine small cottages around a green built in 1811 for retired employees, and various subsidiary buildings, the parkland is listed Grade II* on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. The site has signs of occupation during the Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman periods. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries the site was sold. In 1766 Thomas Farr commissioned Robert Mylne to build the sham castle in Gothic Revival style. After Farr’s bankruptcy, the estate was sold several times until purchased by John Scandrett Harford, who demolished the previous dwelling in 1789 and built the Neoclassical Blaise Castle House. His son, also named John Scandrett Harford, continued with the development of the buildings and estate, which his family occupied until 1926. The park was laid out by Humphry Repton in the early 19th century

Parkfield Colliery was a coal mine near Pucklechurch, South Gloucestershire, England. It was sunk in 1851 under the ownership of Handel Cossham. Coal was reached in 1853. The shaft was 840 ft (260 m) deep, but only the upper series of coal veins were worked. These were the Hard, the Top, the Hollybush and Great veins. The quality of the coal mined was extremely good, and was used for gas manufacture and house coal. Handel Cossham died in 1890 and the pit was put up for sale. (Along with other pits he owned at Deep Pit, South Pit and Speedwell.) It was purchased by Bristol United Collieries, owners of Dean Lane, Easton, Hanham, Pennywell Road and Whitehall collieries. They formed a new company to manage their assets called The Bedminster, Easton, Kingswood and Parkfield Collieries Ltd. A survey of Parkfield Colliery at the time of sale noted that it had two horizontal direct-acting steam winding engines each with 28 in (71 cm) cylinders, a 4 ft (1.2 m) stroke and a drum 15 ft (4.6 m) in diameter. These had been made by Teague & Chew of Cinderford in the Forest of Dean. There were two 38 ft (12 m) high headgears, each with two pulley wheels of 15 ft (4.6 m) diameter. Steam was provided by four Lancashire boilers which measured 27 by 7 ft (8.2 by 2.1 m). A ventilating fan measured 18 by 7 ft (5.5 by 2.1 m) and was driven by a pair of horizontal engines which had 14 in (36 cm) cylinders and a 16 in (41 cm) stroke. 

Elizabeth Shaw Ltd is a Bristol-based company owned by Colian Holding that markets chocolate-based confectionery, including the brands Famous Names liqueur chocolates and Elizabeth Shaw Mint chocolates. The modern company was formed from several mergers of well established confectionery companies, first by J A & P Holland and then by James Goldsmith in the 1960s as part of his creation of his food conglomerate Cavenham Foods. In 1810, the business was founded by Thomas Firth as Firth Confectioners and was Pontefract’s second liquorice factory, making Pontefract cakes. The business changed hands first to David Longstaffe, before coming under the partnership of Robert Ewbank and W. F. Horsell. The company moved to the larger Eagle Liquorice Works in 1887, but the partnership broke up in 1892 leaving Ewbanks solely in charge. The company became incorporated in 1912. The factory was damaged by incendiary bombs during World War II, with a replacement being opened in 1948. The business was purchased by Hollands of Southport in January 1961 for £72,600. The Eagle Liquorice Works were closed in 1965 after becoming part of Cavenham Confectionery.