London Museum of Water & Steam
Victorian London’s thirst, solved in iron and steam. On the old Kew Bridge pumping station, vast beam engines and story-led displays explain how river water became tap water—and how engineering tamed cholera. Visit on a ‘Steam Up’ day to feel the floor thrum. Family water play and a short heritage railway ride round out a half-day.
Opening Hours
What's not to miss inside?
The 90-inch Cornish Beam Engine
Largest working beam engine in the worldA single cylinder the size of a room moves with slow, tidal authority—power you can hear and feel.
📍 Engine House
Water Works 101
From river to tapFiltration beds, pumping lifts and pipes—an invisible city beneath London made visible.
📍 Intro galleries
Steam Up Days
Machines aliveOil, heat and motion change the museum from static to cinematic; interpreters read the engines like conductors.
📍 Selected weekends/holidays
Splash Zone & Mini Railway
Hands-on for younger visitorsValves and screws explain hydraulics by play; a narrow-gauge ride links the site’s moving parts.
📍 Courtyard & grounds
Inspire your Friends
- The museum’s 90-inch engine has a piston nearly 7.5 feet across—built to lift millions of gallons a day with elegant economy.
- Before sand filtration and steam-powered pumping scaled up, London’s water system helped cholera spread rather than stop it.
- On ‘Steam Up’ days, engines are started by hand signals and routine older than radio—an operating ballet preserved by volunteers.
