Monument Series No. 1: The mystery of Bristol's only surviving glasscone

The brick cones once synonymous with the glass industry that thrived in Bristol from the late 17th century have now all but disappeared. In fact, this example from Prewett Street, near St Mary Redcliffe Church, represents the only remnant of the historic industry that survives above ground, and yet extraordinarily is the site which we know least about. Now a restaurant, attached to a hotel, by 1812 it was used as part of H and T Proctor's fertilizer factory. However, its origins, ownership, and what types of glass were made here are not known. The cone structure itself, which first appears on a map of 1780, was reduced to the tops of the annealing arches in its conversion to a restaurant in the 1960s - the form which you can see it in now.

Numerous factors brought the glass industry to Bristol in the 17th century, including the ready availability of coal to fire the furnaces, raw materials such as sand, limestone, red lead and kelp either locally sourced or imported (the latter already coming in from Ireland for soap making), and the strong established trade links from the port. Trade in glass bottles and window glass was established before the end of the 17th century with New England, Virginia, Portugal, Spain and northern Europe. The importation of sugar, on which Bristol came to depend, led to a growth in liquor distilling and this, together with existing trades in wine and locally produced beers and ciders, provided ready markets for glass bottle manufacturers. The deepening and widening of the River Avon to make it navigable to Bath by 1727 also stimulated further interest in glass making in Bristol, enabling the manufacturers to supply bottles, drinking vessels and window glass safely to ready markets in Bath. By the 1720s there were at least twelve glasshouses in the City, and before the end of the century at least sixteen had been established. However, the impact of wars with France and America, and the eventual declaration of independence by the latter, saw the Bristol glass industry contract to about a quarter of its previous size by the end of the century, and the consolidation of much of it by Jacob Wilcox Ricketts, who brought together a number of the Bristol glasshouses and continued manufacturing glass into the 19th century. In this context, the reasons for the demise of the Prewett Street site for glassmaking by 1812 seem clear, and make its survival all the more remarkable. However, its origins and history remain, for now, shrouded in mystery.

References: Bristol Know Your Place website; Witt, Weeden & Schwind 1984: Bristol Glass. Published by Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.

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