The King David Hotel in Bristol, no longer a hotel, was built in 1893, and you can see it is rather an attractive building of red and yellow bricks. it’s three stories high and was open until the 1990’s when it was taken over by Bristol Hospital. It is built on the site of a much older hostelry, the King David Inn. The building is at the bottom of St.Michael’s Hill, and was designed by William Gingell, an architect who designed several of Bristol’s turn of the century buildings.
The King David Inn was a hostelry dating to the early eighteenth century; in 1703 it was described as a ‘house with court and garden called the Lower Handlers, most of which now converted into an Inn called the King David.’ It apparently incorporated part of an old convent into its building. The old nunnery was very old; the nunnery of St Mary Magdalene was founded in 1170 by Eva the wife of Robert Fitzharding
The first recorded licensee in 1752 was a Mrs. Williams; was she the same woman as Widow Williams who was there three years later, and in 1764 was Robert Williams her son? Between him and the pulling down of the old place, there were seventeen more landlords and landladies; maybe Ann Highman who was there in 1833, took over from her husband James Highman?
Did Ann Willey who held the license for eight years in the 1870’s have some connection to William Cates who ran it with her for a further eight years in the 1880’s? I would guess that Rose Cates was William’s wife or daughter, and she held the license until 1891. This is where looking at censuses helps… because it becomes apparent that Ann Willey was William’s mother-in-law, and Rose was his daughter.
It’s so interesting to look at present day buildings, and then look back to see their lives and history.
Lois Elsden 