Former Railway House/Station Keeper'S Cottage

A former railway crossing-keeper's cottage, built in 1848 by the Shrewsbury and Chester Railway. The walls are rendered, likely over brick, with a tiled roof and a red brick stack. It is a two-story cottage with a cruciform plan, built in a “picturesque” estate cottage style. The railway-facing elevation has a Tudor arch door to the left and a central gable that projects forward. This gable features a canted bay with a tiled roof and a plain window above it. The street gable is similarly finished; the yard gable has a window above an added lean-to; and the station gable features a plain window above another. All windows now have 1990s plastic replacements within the original openings. There are bargeboards and spike finials to the gables, and a central stack with three tall red brick diamond-set flues. The interior has not been inspected. Baschurch station was opened in 1848 on the line between Shrewsbury and Oswestry, built by the Shrewsbury, Oswestry and Chester Junction Railway, which later became part of the Shrewsbury and Chester Railway. The railway company’s architect was Francis Thompson, although there's no evidence he designed the cottage. The property was taken over by the Great Western Railway in 1856 and housed the crossing-keeper until the signal box assumed the role in 1880.