Former Goods Shed at Singleton Station, West Dean, West Sussex

Entry Name: Former Goods Shed at Singleton Station

Listing Date: 3 April 2013

Grade: II

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1412379

ID on this website: 101412379

Location: Chichester, West Sussex, PO18

County: West Sussex

District: Chichester

Civil Parish: West Dean

Traditional County: Sussex

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): West Sussex

Church of England Parish: East Dean, Singleton and West Dean

Church of England Diocese: Chichester

Tagged with: Goods shed

Summary

Former goods shed at Singleton Station, 1881.

Description

DATE: this 1881 goods shed for the London Brighton and South Coast Railway was designed by T H Myres of Preston.

MATERIALS: it is constructed of red brick in English bond with a brick moulded cornice and plinth. The hipped tiled roof has terra cotta ridge tiles.

PLAN: almost rectangular, with a goods shed four bays lengthwise by two bays wide entered by double doors at either end and a small office at the south-west end.

EXTERIOR: the north-west side has four full-height pilasters dividing four wooden Tudor style mullioned and transomed pargetted panels, the two centre ones of four lights, the outer ones of five lights, with quatrefoil motifs to the transomes and panels to the mullions with incised snowdrop and bluebell decoration. The north-east end has one five-light similar mullioned and transomed panel, and a full-height double door with iron hinges to the northern bay. The south-east side has two similar central, four-bay panels and double sliding doors at each end originally giving access to the goods platform. A fretted wooden canopy is supported on large wooden brackets on stone corbels. The south-west end has full-height double doors to the northern bay and an attached lower office to the southern bay with a moulded brick chimneystack and a cambered headed six-light sash windows in the north-west and south-east sides.

INTERIOR: the interior has a wooden kingpost roof and an internal hand crane survives.

History

Singleton station was on the Chichester to Midhurst line of the London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) which opened in 1881. The station was unusually large as it served nearby Goodwood Racecourse for one week in the year.

This line was one of four early 1880s lines constructed by LB&SCR, the others being Lewes to East Grinstead, Hailsham to Polegate and Haywards Heath to Horsted Keynes. The stations and goods sheds on these four lines were designed by T H Myres of Preston, Lancashire for the LB & SCR in red brick with stone dressings under tiled roofs. A particular feature was panels of pargetting framed with 'Tudoresque' painted timber. These four lines had 18 stations and four goods sheds but the goods shed at Singleton Station is the only one remaining, the others having been demolished.

This line closed to passengers in 1953 and to freight in 1953. The track has been lifted. The former stationmaster's house to Singleton Station is now a residence and the former goods shed has been in use for storage.

Reasons for Listing

The former goods shed at Singleton Station is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural interest: it is an elaborate brick building in 'Tudoresque' style with most unusual mullioned and transomed painted wooden panels with quatrefoils to the transoms and incised pargetted panels to the mullions;
* Intactness: the exterior is virtually unaltered including a surviving wooden canopy and the interior retains its original kingpost roof and an internal iron crane;
* Rarity: it is the only surviving goods shed built by LB&SCR in this style. No other railway goods shed in the country has these elaborate Tudor style pargetted panels.

External Links

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.