Cosford, Shropshire

Village in Shropshire, England

Human settlement in England

Cosford

The crossroads in Cosford village on the A41 road

Cosford

Location within Shropshire

OS grid reference| SJ785044
Civil parish|

* Donington
* Albrighton

Unitary authority|

* Shropshire

Ceremonial county|

* Shropshire

Region|

* West Midlands

Country| England
Sovereign state| United Kingdom
Post town| WOLVERHAMPTON
Postcode district| WV7
Post town| SHIFNAL
Postcode district| TF11
Dialling code| 01902
Police| West Mercia
Fire| Shropshire
Ambulance| West Midlands
UK Parliament|

* The Wrekin

List of places

England
Shropshire

52°38′13″N 2°19′01″W﻿ / ﻿52.637°N 2.317°W﻿ / 52.637; -2.317

Cosford is a village in Shropshire, England.[1] It is located on the A41 road, which is itself just south of junction 3 on the M54 motorway. The village is very small and is mostly made up of dwellings that house Royal Air Force personnel who work at the adjacent RAF Cosford.

## History

[edit]

Brewer's Dictionary of Britain & Ireland suggests that the name originates from the Old English of Cost, which means Excellent (Ford).[2] It lies between the town of Shifnal and the large village of Albrighton, in the parish of Donington.[3] It has a railway station on the Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line. At the 2011 Census, Cosford was listed as part of a Shifnal ward.[4]

Cosford Grange and Cosford Mill, the sites of which were both located on Albrighton Brook,[5] are now quite remote from the village of Cosford in terms of access because the expansion of the airfield required land from the formation of Worcester Road (which used to connect the A41 and the A464 in a north–south direction).[6] Also on the A464, is Cosford Pool, created to help power the mill[7] and Cosford Pumping Station, built by the Wolverhampton Corporation in 1857. The listed buildings of the pumping station are still there and operated by Severn Trent Water.[8]

Cosford Brook runs from where Ruckley and Neachley Brooks meet just west of RAF Cosford. This is the local name as it remains Ruckley Brook and upon reaching Cosford Bridge on the A464 it becomes the River Worfe.[9]

The village is dominated by RAF Cosford, which is home to the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford, a major visitor attraction and heritage centre. The base itself is built on former farmland, with the outdoor athletics arena being on the site of Sydnal Farm's buildings.[10] The village (and RAF Base) is split into two by the A41 road which runs from London to Birkenhead. The A41 has a junction with the M54 motorway just 1 mile (1.6 km) north of Cosford.[11]

## Notable people

[edit]

* Nicholas Witchell (born 1953 in Cosford)[12] retired journalist, newscaster and Royal correspondent for BBC News.
* Suzi Perry (born 1970) television presenter, was born in the village.[13]
* Justin Mortimer (born 1970) contemporary painter.[14]
* Asa Charlton (born 1977), footballer who has played almost 400 games

## See also

[edit]

* Listed buildings in Albrighton, Bridgnorth

## References

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1. ^ Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 127 Stafford & Telford (Ironbridge) (Map). Ordnance Survey. 2010. ISBN 978-0-319-22851-7.
2. ^ Ayton, John; Crofton, Ian; Cavill, Paul (2005). Brewer's Britain & Ireland. London: Cassell. p. 276\. ISBN 0-304-35385-X.
3. ^ "Area: Donington Parish". Office for National Statistics. HM Gov. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
4. ^ UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Shifnal South and Cosford Ward (as of 2011) (E05008189)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
5. ^ Hough, E; Barnett, A J (1998). "GEOLOGY OF THE BECKBURY AND WORFIELD AREA" (PDF). NERA. British Geological Society. pp. 1–33. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
6. ^ Ordnance Survey: 2007 Reprint sheet 127 Stafford & Telford (Map). Ordnance Survey/Cassini. 1921. ISBN 978-1-84736-182-0. `{{cite map}}`: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
7. ^ "Cosford Grange, Shifnal, Shropshire, England". Parks and Gardens UK. Archived from the original on 4 May 2016. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
8. ^ "Cosford Supply Works, Albrighton". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
9. ^ Robinson, D H (1982). The Wandering Worfe. Albrighton: Waine Research. pp. 30–31\. ISBN 0-905184-06-8.
10. ^ Brew, Alec (1996). Albrighton & Shifnal. Stroud: Chalford. p. 60\. ISBN 0-7524-0384-2.
11. ^ The Royal Air Force handbook. Whitehall, London: Crown. 2006. p. 197. ISBN 978-0-85177-952-2.
12. ^ IMDb.com website retrieved 2 October 2017
13. ^ "About - SuziPerry.com". Retrieved 22 March 2015.
14. ^ Mortimer, Justin (13 March 2014). "Justin Mortimer, DONOR VI". Sotheby's. Retrieved 15 July 2019.

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cosford, Shropshire.