History in Structure

Screen wall to former train shed

A Grade II Listed Building in Buxton, Derbyshire

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Coordinates

Latitude: 53.2605 / 53°15'37"N

Longitude: -1.9136 / 1°54'48"W

OS Eastings: 405863

OS Northings: 373720

OS Grid: SK058737

Mapcode National: GBR HZ2Q.JX

Mapcode Global: WHBBS.L90T

Plus Code: 9C5W736P+5H

Entry Name: Screen wall to former train shed

Listing Date: 21 December 1970

Last Amended: 13 February 2014

Grade: II

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1257936

English Heritage Legacy ID: 463287

ID on this website: 101257936

Location: The Park, High Peak, Derbyshire, SK17

County: Derbyshire

District: High Peak

Electoral Ward/Division: Buxton Central

Parish: Non Civil Parish

Built-Up Area: Buxton

Traditional County: Derbyshire

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Derbyshire

Church of England Parish: Fairfield St Peter

Church of England Diocese: Derby

Tagged with: Wall

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Summary


Gabled screen wall of former train shed built for the London and North Western Railway in 1863 to the designs of J. Smith with advice from Joseph Paxton.

Description


MATERIALS: coursed millstone grit with ashlar dressings.

PLAN: the screen wall is aligned north-west south-east and is on the west side of the railway tracks. It has a short left return and a longer right return which adjoins the station building. This building is not of special interest.

EXTERIOR: the gabled south-west screen wall to the formerly covered station has a central round-headed archway containing a very large lunette with ornate radial iron glazing bars painted white. It has a moulded ashlar surround inscribed ‘LONDON AND NORTH WESTERN RAILWAY CO’ and moulded impost bands. Either side are wide projecting pilasters with a moulded cornice supported by moulded stone corbels. The broad shallow coped gable has a series of round-headed corbel arches beneath. To the left is a slightly lower wall with moulded eaves and a terminal pilaster buttress. The wall has a central round-arched, keyed doorway, above which is a decorative iron bracket, possibly for a lamp originally. This is flanked by single blind panels with a dentilled course. The right return has been lowered, so that what was originally the string course is now the parapet. The wall has a stone plinth and a slightly raised central section, flanked by pilasters. This has a wide centrally-placed segmental arched doorway with a hoodmould. The left return has a moulded stone parapet.

History


The London and North Western Railway (LNWR) and the Midland Railway each opened a terminus at Buxton in 1863. Designed by J. Smith, with advice from Joseph Paxton, the two stations stood on opposite sides of a broad courtyard and achieved a remarkable architectural unity by having identical stone gable screens which faced the town from behind the buffer stops. These screens contained a giant lunette and radial glazing with the respective company’s name engraved around the outer rim. This rare collaboration between two rival railway companies was achieved at the insistence of the Duke of Devonshire who was developing Buxton, most of which he owned, into a fashionable spa town. The Midland Railway station closed in 1967 and was almost completely demolished, leaving only the perimeter wall standing. The train shed of the LNWR station was also demolished and all that now remains is the gable screen and the waiting rooms.

Reasons for Listing


The gabled screen wall of the former train shed, built for the London and North Western Railway in 1863 to the designs of J. Smith, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* Historic interest: it represents a unique collaboration between two railway companies in their approach to station design at the insistence of the Duke of Devonshire who was developing Buxton into a spa town. With the demolition of the Midland Railway station, the striking screen wall is regarded as the surviving monument to this collaboration;

* Architectural interest: the association of Joseph Paxton, who gave advice on the design, adds further interest to the enterprise. The resulting composition, incorporating a giant lunette with radial iron glazing bars, is at once dramatic and elegant.

External Links

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