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[This Sign may be read at the Entrance to the HOTEL du VIN & BISTRO, Lewins Mead, Bristol.]

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The
SUGAR HOUSE

The first SUGAR HOUSE on this site was built in 1728.
At that time BRISTOL was known as 'The Metropolis of the West'.
It was England's Second City, a Thriving, Wealthy Merchant Port & Important Cultural Centre.

During the 18th Century, the geography of BRISTOL was very different.
The course of The River Frome came right through what is now the Town Centre.
Looking from the Front Door of the SUGAR HOUSE, there would have been a Forest of Masts
belonging to the Tall Ships & Cargo Vessel that plied their Trade through the Port.

Throughout the 18th & into the 19th Century SUGAR & TOBACCO became two of the
principal commodities traded through BRISTOL.
It was the task of The Bristol Sugar Refiners to remove the impurities
& produce various grades of pure white crystalline sugar.
The SUGAR HOUSE was one of the many sites around Bristol which carried out this refining process.
Interestingly, CLAY PIPES were manufactured on this site at the same time.

Towards the end of the 18th Century, STEAM ENGINES were developed to speed up sugar production,
& the refinery was redesigned accordingly. A BOILER ROOM (now Hotel Reception),
ENGINE HOUSE (now Wine Cellar), & the CHIMNEY, were added.
As the only remaining SUGAR HOUSE in BRISTOL, this building represents
an important period of Industrial Innovation and, as such, is Grade II listed.

Finally, even the latest technology was not sufficient to preserve The SUGAR HOUSE,
& it closed as a refinery in 1831 after which it continued to be put to a wide range
of industrial uses including Tobacco Storage & Bird Seed manufacturing.

After lying empty for 11 years, there followed a sensitive reconstruction by the
ALTERNATIVE HOTEL COMPANY
which recognised the importance of this building as a fine example of Industrial Archaeology.
This Historical & Beautiful property was re-opened as
HOTEL du VIN
in November 1999.

*****

[This Sign may be read at the Entrance to the HOTEL du VIN & BISTRO, Lewins Mead, Bristol.]

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