English Steam Museums
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REGIONAL TOURISM
HISTORY OF STEAM PRE-1800
HISTORY OF STEAM 1800-1900
HISTORY OF STEAM POST-1900
AUSTRALIAN STEAM MUSEUMS
Some English Steam Museums
Obviously from reading our "History of Steam Power" pages, you will gather that a very large part of the evolution process took place in England and Cornwall. Having that much history behind and around them, it was natural that they have taken up the restoration of steam equipment in a big way. The following is a far from complete list of steam museums and websites that will give a broad impression of the machinery that made the world in which we now live.
Railway Museums are easy to find on the internet and so not many are listed below. Simply search for "Preserved Steam railway" or similar.
Kew Bridge Steam Museum situated in southwest London. A broad collection of engines from the very large Beam Engines to high speed vertical compounds and horizontal reciprocating pump engines.
Crossness – in southeast London. These engines were used for sewerage duty to help prevent further cholera outbreaks in London in the mid 1850's. This museum houses four large rotative beam engines with ornate columns and capitals of varied designs, but the museum is also reknowned for the ornate ironwork in the building and interior.
Museum of Power – Langford (Maldon, Essex) holds a working triple expansion vertical steam engine "Lilleshall" as well as a collection of other steam memorabilia and a working overhead powered workshop.
Ryhope Engine Trust based in the Ryhope Pumping station near Sunderland on the east coast of England. The musuem holds a wide collection of steam engines and also a blacksmiths forge, a waterwheel and a replica plumbers workshop. This site includes a good list to other English museums.
Westonzoyland is situated in a small village in west Somerset. It centres on the main pump which was used for drainage of the flatlands for agriculture. It also houses a range of stationary steam engines and other drainage industry collectables.
The Old Engine House in Norfolk, England. Holds a range of small pumping engines and particularly the almost unknown Riches and Watt engines.
Ellenroad Ring Mill is a fully working Cotton Mill near Rochdale a few miles east of Liverpool. The main feature of the mill is the main driving engine - a 3000HP horizontal reciprocating engine. The museum also has a couple of other engines. The Site includes links to other museums and also other interesting steam sites.
Bolton Steam Museum, Brownlow Fold, Bolton, Lancashire. Houses a big collection of restored steam industrial stationary engines.
Dogdyke Steam Drainage Station is a small museum in Nottinghamshire with the original steam pump (rotative beam) from 1856, and the Ruston and Hornsby diesel whuich replaced it in 1940. There is also a Ruston and Hornsby diesel driving an air compressor wich is needed to start the main diesel pump. This site also has an extensive list of links to other steam museums.
York Steam Museum - Preserved and restored railway engines including steam engines. The major Railway Museum of England.
But wait - there's more - but now we leave it for you to find. When you find anything REALLY interesting or different, please let us know too so that we can let others know by listing here.