Cold War Documents Bunker - Bristol
It didn’t take long to come across the large, former railway portal that now serves as the abandoned document archive beneath Clifton Rocks. This area seems to be a hotspot for all sorts of intriguing subterranean structures. The front door, now off its hinges and lying on the floor, provided a strangely welcoming sight.
In earlier years, the door was sealed shut, and access was only possible through a grille located high up on the portal (as seen on first photo below). To get inside, you would have to crawl through the ventilation ducting and drop down—a challenging entry method, but often the only option available. At that time, many documents were still scattered throughout the space.
The bunker is now partially flooded, with water reaching just over ankle depth throughout. Old storage and archive boxes remain, along with metal racking and a few wooden storage units, though the latter have mostly rotted away with time.
History
“Located in Bristol, beneath the iconic Clifton Suspension Bridge, lies a Cold War-era fortification. Originally part of a railway line that ceased operation in 1922, this underground structure was repurposed around 1940 as a secure document archive. Spanning approximately 64 meters in length, the bunker housed critical records for various departments of the local City Council and the South West Region. Due to its secretive nature, detailed records of its construction and use are scarce, though it is believed to have remained operational until the 1970s”.
