The Avon Gorge 1910 and 2014 - On the 12 November 1910 the Bristol & Colonial Aeroplane Company and its chairman Sir George White arranged a public demonstration of the new Bristol “Boxkite” on Durdham Down. Two well-known French pilots Maurice Tetard and Henri Jullerot were invited to fly the plane and a temporary tent hangar was erected near to the Sea Walls. The event attracted many thousands of people to the Downs - one of the local papers reported that “the Downs were almost black with people”. Before the plane could fly a large body of police had to clear an area near the hangar to act as a runway. “Amidst ringing cheers” M. Tetard took his seat in the flimsy biplane and after taxiing towards Stoke Rd he turned and took off over the Sea Walls. He completed two circuits over the Avon Gorge and around the Downs as far as the water tower before landing safely, despite the aeroplane being buffeted by a strong wind. The first photo shows the Bristol Boxkite passing over the Gorge with the Suspension Bridge in the background while the other photo shows it passing at low level over the crowd and the temporary hangar near the Sea Walls. The present day view of the Gorge demonstrates some of the changes that occurred when the Portway was built in 1922-26. The Bristol Port and Pier Railway line seen in the 1910 photo was dismantled as was Point Villa, the prominent Georgian residence on the bend of the river. The final photo shows the replica Bristol Boxkite on display in the City Museum. It was one of three replicas produced for the 1965 film “Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines”, one of which is still flown in flying displays today.
Posted on: Thu, 21 Aug 2014 07:46:30 +0000
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