Galton Valley Pumping Station
Small free canal museum in a Victorian pumping station in Smethwick, open one Saturday a month in summer and run largely by volunteers.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The New Smethwick Pumping Station opened in 1892 to lift water from the lower Birmingham New Main Line up to the higher Old Main Line canal. It replaced two earlier wooden beam engine houses in Smethwick, one of which had been the home of James Watt's Smethwick Engine. As canal traffic declined, the pumping station closed in the mid-1920s and stood empty, apart from a short period of use in the war years.
In the late 1980s the building was restored and reopened as the Galton Valley Canal Heritage Centre. The small museum moved into the pumping station in 2011 from its earlier home on Brasshouse Lane, and many of the original objects went to Smethwick Heritage Centre in Victoria Park because space was limited.
The displays tell the story of the Galton Valley canals and of the people who designed, built and worked on them, including the civil engineering of Galton Bridge and daily life on the waterways. The site is run for Sandwell Museum Service and is staffed largely by volunteers from the Friends of Galton Valley Pumping Station. A 3D online tour is also available.
Highlights
- Victorian canal pumping station of 1892
- Displays on canal engineering and Galton Bridge
- Stories of the people who built and worked the canals
- Canal towpath setting beside the Birmingham main lines
- Free admission
- 3D online tour
Permanent exhibition
- Galton Valley canal story – Small museum on the development of the Galton Valley canals, canal engineering including Galton Bridge, and the lives of the people who built and worked on them.
- Operated by
- Sandwell Museum Service with the Friends of Galton Valley Pumping Station
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
Entrance is free.
Accessibility
- Partially wheelchair accessible
- Elevator: no information
- Accessible restroom: not available
- Accessible parking: no information
- Service dogs welcome
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description: no information
Access from the street is by a steep flight of steps. The alternative route is a ramp from the bridge on the opposite side of the road, followed by a walk back under the bridge to the pumping station. Well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome, and guide dogs are permitted. There are no toilets on site.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Public transport information is available from Transport for West Midlands.
By car
Parking available
A small car park next to the Albion Foundation building on Brasshouse Lane, plus some on-road parking.
The museum is on the canal towpath of the main line canal, reached from the bridge on Brasshouse Lane.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
There are no toilets on site.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Good to know | The site is run by volunteers. An online 3D tour is available for people who cannot visit. |
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