Print, Great Western Railway, The Great Western Railway Station at the Bristol Terminus, drawn by S C Jones.

Bristol Station opened in 1840 as the western terminus of the Great Western Railway from London Paddington. The station was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and is now known as Temple Meads. It is Bristol’s oldest and largest station.

S C Jones made the drawing from which this print is based. He made architectural and landscape drawings of the Bristol and Monmouthshire area (see prints in the British Museum collection), but no further details of his life are known.

The printing firm Day & Haghe, appointed lithographers to the Queen in 1838, published a diverse range of prints, including architectural and topographical views, hunting scenes, and—as shown here—views of the railways.

It has been estimated that no fewer than 2,000 prints of railway subjects were produced during the years 1830 to the late 1840s, and scarcely a line opened without at least one view of its engineering accomplishments being published. It is difficult for us today to understand the emotional as well as financial commitment to railways during these early years. The railway was often seen as a slowly spreading symbol of change and progress towards a better world. The dedication at the bottom of this lithograph highlights this idea in exaggerated terms: 'To the Directors & Proprietors of this stupendous commercial undertaking which is unquestionably the greatest public work ever executed in ancient or modern times and which (owing to the introduction of the broad guage [sic] by its enterprising & talented engineer I. K. Brunel Esquire) stands unrivalled both as regards speed & safety.'