Our archives and
collections

In addition to the material on display Aerospace Bristol houses a reserve object collection and the substantial company archive which dates from 1910.

The collections include objects and archives relating to the Bristol Aeroplane Company, its predecessors and its successor companies (including the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company, Bristol Aeroplane Company and British Aircraft Corporation. These are often referred to as the “Bristol family” of companies).

The collections include working objects, aircraft and other transport vehicles, development materials, personal items, uniforms, minute books, account books, sales ledgers, annual reports, photographs, glass plate negatives, drawings, film and ephemera. There are also books and journals supporting the collection.

Many of our catalogue descriptions are available to search on The National Archives Discovery catalogue and more will be added as cataloguing progresses.

Please note that staff records aren’t part of the company archive. If you’re trying to trace a relative we’d suggest the Local Studies department at your library as the best place to start.

The engine side of the story of the Bristol family of companies is with The Rolls-Royce Heritage Trust Bristol Branch and is available by appointment.

The Sir George White papers are held by Bristol Archives.

The blog accompanying our successful ‘Out of the Aircraft Hold’ project will give you a taste of the type of materials we hold. Find out more >

Visiting our archive collection

If you are interested in viewing any materials that we hold please email collections@aerospacebristol.org. Please understand that our team is very small so access to materials is by appointment only and is limited to 2 hours per visit. Archive visitors are required to purchase a museum ticket.

Donations

Aerospace Bristol is dedicated to preserving the history of the aerospace industry in Bristol and we welcome donations of material that support this aim. If you are interested in donating objects or archival material to Aerospace Bristol, please get in touch with us by emailing collections@aerospacebristol.org .

Please be aware we can’t accept donations without prior information.