Colstons Almshouses Colston's Almshouses

Colston's Almshouses is an almshouse built in 1691, with restorations in 1861 and 1988. It is constructed from limestone ashlar and features ridge stacks and a pantile hipped roof. The building has a U-shaped plan with wings on either side of a courtyard, standing two storeys high. The central section has an 8-window range, flanked by 10-window wings, creating a symmetrical appearance.

The central chapel is slightly advanced and has a pediment, with drip moulds on both floors and a stone eaves cornice. The large central doorway features an eared architrave and a 6-panel oak door, topped with a deep segmental canopy supported by foliate brackets. Above the door is a moulded panel inscribed to Edward Colston, adorned with a broken pediment, and flanked by oval keyed windows. A clock is set into the tympanum of the pediment. Additional doorways are located at the ends of the central section and in the 3rd and 5th bays of the wings, each with pitched canopies on brackets and 4-panel oak doors.

The windows are stone moulded cross windows with architraves for metal casements, featuring alternate and segmental pediments along the string course, with two segmental pediments on the end elevations. The rear elevation includes a projecting chapel with a rose window and lower flanking windows that contain stained glass, alongside a good plank door leading to a flagged basement, which has cross boarding on the inside. The stacks are diagonally set with linked cornices, and there is a central bell cupola topped with an ogee roof, along with square section lead downpipes.

Inside, the chapel has been refurbished in the late 17th century, showcasing panelled timber pilasters flanking the entrance and in the corners of the east end. It features a 3-bay barrel-vaulted timber roof and tall wainscotting that rises behind the altar to a segmental pediment. The chapel includes attached side benches with curved arm rests and a single row of pews on each side with desks. The houses have undergone extensive restoration. The almshouses were founded by the prominent Bristol philanthropist and merchant Edward Colston.