Filton - History

History

For history related to aeroplanes and flying, see Bristol Filton Airport#History.

At the dawn of the 20th century, Filton was a small village, still detached from the city of Bristol to the south. Farming was the principal occupation. However, there was a large factory-like laundry in the village, opposite Filton House, owned by Samuel Shield.

The Bristol to South Wales railway line passed through the village. There was a small station near the site of the current Abbey Wood Station. A much larger railway station, known as Filton Junction, opened in 1910, after the rail route from Bristol to London was finished.

In 1907 the northern terminus for Bristol Tramways was moved out from Horfield to Filton. Tram production in the tramway sheds commenced in 1908. The manufacture of aeroplanes started in the Bristol Tramway sheds in 1910. Aeroengine production started in 1920.

Between the wars Filton expanded rapidly, to become a suburb of Bristol. Terraced and semi-detached housing, in small estates on both sides of the A38 trunk road, was built. Eventually, Filton became part of the Bristol conurbation, although it remained outside the city boundary.

During the 1930s, two infant/primary schools and one secondary school were built in Filton to accommodate the growing number of school-age children in the area. Many of these children were evacuated when WWII started in 1939, but returned later, during the Phoney War.

Filton High School, originally a grammar school, but now a comprehensive, started to take pupils in 1960.

In the late 1940s The main runway of Filton Aerodrome was greatly extended for the Brabazon project. Charlton village was demolished and the pre-war Filton bypass was severed. In the early 1960s, a new bypass was constructed, roughly parallel to the old one, and this later became part of the M5 motorway.

During the mid-1970s the A38 trunk road was upgraded to a dual carriageway. Station Road, a country lane in the early part of the 20th century, was also widened to become a dual carriageway and form part of the Avon Ring Road.

Sandwiched between roads, factories, railway lines and the aerodrome, Filton expanded little after WWII. However, from the late 1970s a trading estate slowly developed on the eastern side of the Bristol/South Wales railway line in what is now known as East Filton. Later, the Ministry of Defence set up a large office complex, known as Abbey Wood, in the same area.

Filton is also home to the Filton Concert Brass. The band, formed 60 years ago, is currently Bristol's highest-placed brass band, having been promoted to the First Section of the West Region at the 2010 Regional Finals in Torquay. This places them above other Bristol bands such as Bristol East and Kingswood, and City of Bristol. For the past few years, the band has been conducted in contests by Bryn James. The band's oldest serving member, Jim Scott, was a founding member of the band and, until this year, had played in the regional finals every year!

In 1973 the Rolls-Royce car division was separated as Rolls-Royce Motors. Rolls-Royce (1971) Limited (the engine division) was privatised in 1987 as Rolls-Royce plc.