from The Brunel's kingdom Collection of Drawings.
Beginning its construction by the Knight’s Templar, on the meadows of a 12th, century Temple Church and sometimes referred to as “ Holy Cross”, this is where Temple Meads Station derived its name. It was built in Tudor Gothic Revival style. This style was adopted by the gifted engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel and is used in much of his work. The style still lends itself to modern railway design. Completed in 1841, The Old Station is an important landmark, being one of the first railway lines to be built in Britain. It is the world’s oldest surviving purpose-built railway terminus and was regarded as a “Wonder of the Victorian Age“. It is a grade 1 listed building and has been nominated as a World Heritage Site. The Old Station is currently the home of The British Empire and Commonwealth Museum. For the first time, public access has been granted for Brunel’s historic railway building and tours of Bristol Old Station will begin in the spring of 2006. Led by an expert guide, tour highlights include the massive passenger shed, cavernous underground vaults and the mock- Gothic grandeur of The Great Western Railway Boardroom.