The Old Market Street drill hall is a former military installation in the Old Market district of

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

History

The building, which is located on the site of a former sugar warehouse and refinery, was financed by

George George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...

and Henry Wills as part of arrangements to provide alternative accommodation for organisations displaced by the construction of the

Wills Memorial Building The Wills Memorial Building (also known as the Wills Memorial Tower or simply the Wills Tower) is a neo-Gothic building in Bristol, England, designed by Sir George Oatley and built as a memorial to Henry Overton Wills III

. The new drill hall was designed as the headquarters of the 4th (City of Bristol) Battalion, The

Gloucestershire Regiment The Gloucestershire Regiment, commonly referred to as the Glosters, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 until 1994. It traced its origins to Colonel Gibson's Regiment of Foot, which was raised in 1694 and later became the ...

, who had relocated from the Queen's Road drill hall in Clifton (since demolished), in June 1915. The 4th battalion was converted into a searchlight battalion in 1938 and transferred to the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

(as 66th (Gloucesters) Searchlight Regiment, Royal Artillery) in 1940. It was headquartered at

Badminton School Badminton School is a private boarding and day school for girls aged 4 to 18 years situated in Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol, England. Named after Badminton House in Clifton, Bristol, where it was founded, the school has been located at its curren ...

Westbury-on-Trym Westbury-on-Trym (sometimes written without hyphenation) is a suburb in the north of the City of Bristol, near the suburbs of Stoke Bishop, Westbury Park, Henleaze, Southmead and Henbury, in the southwest of England. The place is partly na ...

, for much of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the drill hall was used instead to accommodate

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

troops. These troops created some adverse publicity for themselves when they became involved in a serious brawl in the street outside the drill hall in July 1944. After the war the drill hall was decommissioned and fell into disrepair; it has since been converted for residential use.

References

{{reflist Buildings and structures in Bristol Drill halls in England Locally listed buildings in Bristol