History of Totterdown
Maps of Totterdown from the early 17th century show it as an agricultural area with the Bath Road, Wells Road and St. John's Lane running through it. In the early 1700s, turnpikes (tollbooths) were erected at the junction of Wells Road and Bath Road (by what is now the Turnpike pub) and at the junction with the Wells Road and St. John's Lane. The toll charges proved unpopular and rioters destroyed the tollgates in 1749. The steep slope of Pylle Hill caused a nuisance for stagecoaches and in 1833 a new wider road was built with the top of the hill removed to reduce the gradient.
Until the mid nineteenth century Totterdown remained a rural area. Two windmills one on Windmill Hill and another in the School Road area, were probably used to mill cattle feed. The slopes of Totterdown were built on from the mid-nineteenth century onwards, with a rapid increase in house building during the 1860s and 1870s to accommodate workers from the newly built Temple Meads railway station and for other industries in the central Bristol area. By the end of the 19th century most of the greenfield sites were built on. Local churches served the local population; there was a public house or off licence on almost every corner; a wide range of shops developed along the Wells Road; and trams ran regularly between Bristol Bridge and Totterdown.
The proximity of Totterdown to the railway lines and Bristol's main station made it a target for bombers during the Second World War. Many properties, homes, businesses, churches, and other public buildings were damaged and there were some fatalities.
During the 1970s a road scheme was proposed and many houses were demolished. However, the road scheme was never implemented, and later new houses were built on much of the land. An area of land was left next door to the new Bush pub - which was known as Zone A and was designated for community use. Kate Pollard has written a full account of the fight against the road plans and the impact that the demolition had on Totterdown in her book Totterdown Rising.
More local history can be found at the About Bristol website or at the site of local pub The Shakespeare.