‘A Fitting Receptacle for the Depraved and Abandoned’: Rethinking Punishment at Bristol’s New Gaol, 1816-1831

Bristol’s new gaol on Cumberland Road first opened its doors for business in 1820. Ambitiously conceived as a modern alternative to the crumbling, insecure and insanitary old prison at Newgate, the architects of the New Gaol sought to turn punishment into a science. Systems of hard labour, a treadwheel, constant surveillance, segregation, religious instruction and minimal interpersonal association were intended to target prisoners’ minds as well their bodies.

The New Gaol’s reputation amongst the working class communities it was built to serve can perhaps best be judged by the determined attack made upon it during the riots of 1831 and the consequent liberation of all its prisoners; mostly young men convicted or awaiting trial for petty property offences. This talk takes a closer look at some of those prisoners and explores in detail the gaol’s design and purpose, the rules under which it was governed and the meaning of its architectural design.