History · Bristol
A history of Bristol,
since 1785
Postcards, papers and photographs of Bristol from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.
1785established
6old images & papers
0recent photos
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗The area that includes present-day Bristol was originally inhabited by the Tunxis Native American tribe, one of the Eastern Algonquian-speaking peoples that shared the lower Connecticut River Valley.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items below1785Established
1900s6 items · Bristol gas works postcardCommons
1910–1999Nothing yet. Family albums go here.
Help out
Finish Bristol’s story
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewBristol gas works postcard, 1901–1907: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Bristol
See all 45 →
By decade
Bristol, decade by decade
1900s6 items
CommonsBristol gas works postcard1901–1907 · postcard
CommonsForestville Central Square postcard1901–1907 · postcard
CommonsMain Street at Riverside Drive, Bristol - postcard1901–1907 · postcard
CommonsMain Street in Bristol - postcard1901–1907 · postcard
CommonsBristol station and freight house postcard1907–1915 · postcard
CommonsBristol station postcard (2)1907–1915 · postcard1910s–
1990s
1990s
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your albumThen & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Bristol gas works postcard (1901–1907) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (6). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.