Collection T - Archives of the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust

Identity area

Reference code

GB 3493 T

Title

Archives of the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust

Date(s)

  • 1828 - current (Creation)

Level of description

Collection

Extent and medium

Approximately 40 linear metres of paper-based documents, including photographs and drawings. Also included are digital files (extent unknown).

Context area

Name of creator

Administrative history

Name of creator

Administrative history

Archival history

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

Content and structure area

Scope and content

This collection consists of material created by the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust (CSBT) and its predecessors during the course of its business. Also included are papers created by the Bridge's consulting engineers and deposited with the CSBT, these are:
Howard Humphreys & Sons and Howard Humphreys & Partners (1910 - 2006)
Flint & Neill Partnership/Cowi (2006 - )

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Files have been appraised according to the CSBT's Collections Management Policy and the the CSBT's Retention Schedule.

Accruals

Further accruals are expected.

System of arrangement

Material has been arranged into four different principle functions carried out by Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust: Governance and Managing the Bridge; Maintaining the Bridge; Operating the Bridge and providing information and services to those Visiting the Bridge. As far as possible the original order of the records have been kept.

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Current and working files are not available to the public and access is restricted in accordance with copyright and data protection legislation.

Conditions governing reproduction

Language of material

  • English

Script of material

    Language and script notes

    Physical characteristics and technical requirements

    Finding aids

    CSBT Archives Master Catalogue.docx
    CSBT Drawings Master Register.xlsx

    Allied materials area

    Existence and location of originals

    Existence and location of copies

    Related units of description

    In 1972 some of the Trust’s archives were deposited with the University of Bristol Special Collections. This deposit (referenced as DM484) consisted of 7 archive boxes, 7 rolls and 2 oversized flattened items and included letter books of the Committee (1830-1857), minute books of the Board of Directors and Committee of Trustees (1830-1900, 1919-1955), cash books (1830-1867), Registers of Shareholders (1862-1952) and Annual Reports (1861-1951). The majority of the material relates to the administration of the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust or Company, but there are a certain number of working drawings, surveys and plans (1857-1939). There is also memorabilia relating to the 1864 opening ceremony (referenced as DM2319).
    Further material, which was chosen because of its fragile physical condition was taken from the Bridge Master’s Office and the Visitor Centre and deposited with the University of Bristol in 2003 (DM1929, 1 archive box, 2 rolls). These included:
    • Howard Humphreys & Sons' 1972 copies of F Gleadow’s 1903 tracings,
    • volumes and manuscript notes on Acts and Byelaws, dated 1830 – 1972,
    • minutes of Trustees 1901 – 1955,
    • tickets, programme for the opening ceremony (1864), a notebook presumably listing attendees issued with tickets, and a supplement to the Western Daily Press dated 9 December 1864.

    In November 2010 the collections at Bristol University were transferred to the Brunel Institute, a collaborative venture between the University of Bristol and ss Great Britain Trust.

    The Bristol Record Office holds three volumes of letter books created by the Trustees of Clifton Suspension Bridge, dated 1831 – 1839, 1839 – 1857, 1860 – 1862. These items were deposited by Bristol solicitors, Osborne, Ward, Vassall, Abbot & Co in 1957, who were the legal representatives for the Trust at the time. (References: 12167/42, 12167/43, 12167/44).

    Notes area

    Alternative identifier(s)

    Access points

    Subject access points

    Place access points

    Name access points

    Genre access points

    Description identifier

    Institution identifier

    Rules and/or conventions used

    Status

    Draft

    Level of detail

    Partial

    Dates of creation revision deletion

    Draft description created by Hannah Little, Bridge Archivist, on 6 November 2018.

    Language(s)

    • English

    Script(s)

      Sources

      Accession area