Ashton gate, Since 1904 the home of Bristol city football club, was first used by the Bedminster club who moved there at the start of 1896-97. On 12th september that season, staple hill became the first visitors when Bedminster
scored an entertaining 4-2 victory. On that occasion, only a portion of the ground was used to accommodate spectators. Two weeks later, for the official opening of the ground with a western league match between Bedminster and warmley, the dressing rooms and grand stand still had to be completed. The western daily press had no reservations, however, and in it's issue for 28th september, the newspaper confidently predicted that Ashton gate would 'undoubtedly rank as one of the finest athletic grounds in the west of England'. In those days the pitch was laid out as it is today, running lengthways between Ashton road and Smyth road. By the time that England met Wales on 20th March 1899, in the first full international to be played in Bristol, it appears (according to a sketch in the Bristol
Observer) there was a stand on the right hand side of the ground, looking towards the clifton
suspension bridge. This was probably the structure which was deemed unsafe in 1966.
When Bristol city made their permanent move to Ashton gate in 1904, they needed to increase the spectator accommodation and reached agreement with Bedminster Althletic ground company to take over the whole site of more than six acres. A soccer pitch measuring 120 yards by 80 yards was laid out in the centre of the site, with a ten-yard 'border' right around the playing area so that Bedminster cricket club could use the ground in the summer. The cricket ground was fenced in with 3ft 9in-high iron railings.
On 5th march 1904, the western daily press reproduced a sketch of how it was hoped the ground would eventually look. It was an ambitious plan, for it showed all four sides under cover which was only achieved in the mid 1990's.
On 27th August 1904, when the first team beat possibles 9-0 in the first public practice game on the ground, a western daily press report described Ashton gate as having two grand stands (number one and two), each of which seated 1,200 people. Admission to number one stand was a shilling; for number two stand it was ninepence. There was covered accommodation for approximately 8,000 at one end, and the other (park end) was open.
In 1916, the covered end (eastend) was badly damaged by gales and in December the following year the roof was demolished after being declared unsafe. It was not untill 1928 that the roof was replaced, paid for by the money which city had recived from the transfers of Albert keating and Clarrie bourton, who were both sold to Blackburn rovers for a combined fee of £3,650. The structure that went up in the wake of their departure is still there today, known to home fans as the EastEnd, Covered end or winterstoke road end. Originally, it was affectionately referred
to as the ''Keating Stand''. During the 1986-87 season the roof again was renewd and sheeted in red.
The number one grand stand was an imposing building and it was unfortunate that when the luftwaffe dropped bombs on Bristol during the night of 16th january 1941, they destroyed the 'number one stand' and did not rid the club of what had become known as 'the cow shed' on the opposite side of the ground which later became the dolman stand.
Building restrictions in post-war Britain meant that it was 1951 before permit was issued fot the club to build a new grand stand. Work began in the summer of that year when the first half of the new stand, nearest the covered end, was completed. A steel shortage and lack of funds delayed the completion of the stand until 1953, when the supporters club made a £3,000 donation towards the cost. The city directors, in return, leased the supporters club space beneath the stand for it's first permanent home. This was, incidentally, city's third supporters club and was formed in 1949. The first was founded in the clubs st.johns lane days but did not survive long, after opposition from some board members. The second was founded in April 1919, but how long it lasted is unclear; certainly, by the start of league football again in 1946, no such orgainisation was operating.
Bristol city became the pioneers in floodlit football in 1950's and it was club chairman Harry dolman
who designed and produced the first lights at Ashton gate. By modern-day standards it was an antiquated
system, consisting of a series of 40ft high metal pylons at intervals of about 45ft around the pitch.
Each pylon had a cluster of three lamps. On 27th january 1953, wolves were the first visitors for a floodlit
match at Ashton gate. The game had been postponed for a week earlier becuse of fog, but 24,008 people turned
up to see the First division club win 4-2. Floodlit football league and Fa Cup matches were not permitted
at the time, so the first competitive match under city's lights was a Football combination game against
Swansea town reserves on 24th febuary 1953, when 4,315 saw city's second-string win 2-1.
These lights remained in operation until the end of 1964-65, when they were sold to southern league club,
Burton albion, for £2,000. City then invested £27,000 in the system of 160ft pylons, at one each of the
corner of the ground but becuse of problems with shadows when the dolman stand was built, additional lighting
was added to the dolman and williams stand, these pylons were last used at Ashton in november 1991, they
were then removed in june 1992 and given to wigan athletic.
At the time of of install the 160ft pylons had 48 lamps, and wolves again were the visitors to 'switch-on'
the lights. This time, however, it was a second division game and 36,183 spectators saw the midlands club win 1-0.
The number two grandstand was condemned as unsafe in the close season of 1966 and demolished, although it was four years before the Dolman stand was built. In the meantime, the appearance of Ashton gate had hardly enhanced, Open for the 1970-71 season, the dolman stand incorporates greens for indoor-bowls, later to be revamped in to a supporters club room and function hire.
The park end which was open terrace changed little over the years and it was not untill 1994 it was demolished to make way for the Atyeo stand (named after john atyeo) which was built to co-incide with the taylor report that clubs had to make stadiums all seater, this was the case after the hillsborogh disater where liverpool fans were crushed to death at a fa cup game staged there. The open parkend was last used on 5th march 1994 when a goaless draw was played out with Derby county, preparation work started for the erection of the Atyeo stand started 9 days later. The Atyeo stand cost £1.5 million to build and was built in the summer of 1994, seating 4,100 spectators in a single tier, maximum height 33ft by 259ft wide. The Ateyo stand was then given to home supporters and it also incorporated the dressing rooms which used to be located in the williams stand. It was officially opened on 8th October 1994 by sir Bert millichip, chairman of the Fottball Association, before a home game with Millwall when the players ran out of the behined the goal tunnel for the first time.
Bristol city held only a short lease at st.johns lane and during 1903-04, they approached the Ashton court estate trustees for an extension of the lease for another ten years. Mr napier, of the trustees, held out no hope and suggested that City instead moved to Ashton gate, where 14 home games had been played in 1900-01, following the amalgamation with Bedminster FC. The directors were in an impossible position becuse there was also a clause whereby the trustees could, upon giving six months notice, take one-third of the ground, such area including where the grandstand was sited. City therefore reached agreement with Bedminster Athletic ground company to take up possesion of Ashton gate at the end of 1903-04; and the trustees were happy for city to vacate St.johns lane at the same time. City's last match at St.johns lane was on April 30th 1904, when the first team beat the reserves -- who had just won the Bristol charity league and the western league division two titles -- 3-2. That did not, however, see the end of St.johns lane as a sporting venue. Bristol RUFC held two trial matches there at the start of 1904-05, and the ground was then called the Dickenson robinson sports ground and staged matches from the Somerset senior league.
When Bristol south ebd and Bristol city used St.johns lane there was a rifle range, as well as facilities for lawn tennis and bowls. On 12th August 1899, the football club held what they styled their first annual athletics meeting, but there was no obvious record of any further meetings being held.
The record of the 274 Bristol south end / City first team matches being played at St.johns lane is; 187 won, 31 drawn and 56 lost, with 784 goals for and 392 goals against. There was one other first team home game played in that time, in 1894-95 when street won 3-2 on Waverleys ground behined the Talbot public house on Wells road in the district of knowle, Bristol.
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