Canon'S Marsh Goods Shed

Canon's Marsh Goods Shed is a railway goods shed built in 1906, designed by architectural assistant P.E. Culverhouse and engineered by W. Armstrong for the Great Western Railway. It features reinforced concrete constructed using the Hennebique system, which was a pioneering method at the time. The building is partially clad in render and blue engineering bricks, with the roof not visible.

The shed is open plan and consists of two storeys, measuring ten bays long and four bays wide. The south elevation has square stanchions leading to a cornice, with pilasters below a second-floor cornice. This façade includes blind panels that alternate with metal-framed windows featuring glazing bars. The north side has a ground floor supported by black brick piers, which lead to segmental arches topped with six-light mullion and transom windows. At the eastern end, there is an attached two-storey office block with a three-window range, characterized by a blue brick plinth, a plat band, and a cornice. The office block has brick segmental-arched head dressings above a central doorway, with blind windows to the right and five-window side elevations.

Inside, the structure is supported by stanchions that hold two wide parabolic arches spanning the central bays, with half arches in the side aisles. Historically, this goods shed was built by the Great Western Railway to terminate the line into the docks from the west and played a significant role in the development of Canon's Marsh, which was largely an industrial area in the 19th century. It is notable for its early use of reinforced concrete systems in Britain, with design drawings referencing the Hennebique patent for ferro-concrete construction. W. Armstrong was responsible for new works on the Great Western Railway, which was a leader in adopting this construction method.