Since fire ripped through the Grosvenor Hotel on October 18, 2022, the Grosvenor Hotel near Temple Meads has become one of Bristol's biggest eyesores.
Fenced off due to safety concerns, its future remains undecided despite attempts by the city council to force the owner into demolishing what remains of the structure.
The Grosvenor Hotel was opened in 1875 and offered the perfect place for an overnight stay or lunch and a drink for travellers using Bristol Temple Meads, which had opened 35 years earlier.
At its peak, the 70-bedroom hotel would have been one of the first grandeur sights greeting newcomers to the city with all the hallmarks of Brunel thanks to it being designed by his former assistant, architect S C Fripp.
Records show that 100 years ago it would cost guests eight shillings and sixpence for bed and breakfast, which is about £35 in today’s money.
But the hotel hit hard times with it becoming isolated by road infrastucturewhich also saw a fly-over taking vehicles close to bedroom windows. It changed hands several times over the decades, and noteably appeared in the 1979 film Radio On.
In the late 1980s it became a bed and breakfast for the homeless before, in 1993, closing its doors on safety grounds.
Here’s a look back at the hotel through the years in a selection of pictures:
1. Victoria Street
A look back on the history of the Grosvenor Hotel with pictures from 1907 to 2022 | Know Your Place
2. The very beginning
Planned drawings for the hotel, which opened in 1875. It was the work of architect S C Fripp, who had worked as Brunel’s assistant on designing the nearby Temple Meads station. (Source: Know Your Place) | Know Your Place
3. In its prime
An advertising postcard for the hotel published in 1907. Spot the tram lines on Victoria Street outside. (Source: Know Your Place). | Know Your Place
4. Victoria Street
A look back on the history of the Grosvenor Hotel with pictures from 1907 to 2022 | Know Your Place