Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum

About the museum

The Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum occupies a Grade II listed Victorian pumping station in east London. The site was once Low Hall Farm, and Walthamstow Urban District Council bought the land in 1875 to build a sewage pumping station. Before that a moated manor house stood there from the fourteenth century; a flying bomb destroyed its later successor in 1944.

The idea of a museum was first raised in the 1970s, soon after the steam engines stopped working. The museum opened in 1997, when local enthusiasts restored the listed Marshall steam engines and formed the Friends of the Pumphouse. It is a volunteer-run registered charity and in 2025 joined with the nearby Markfield Beam Engine and Museum to form the Heritage and Communities Trust.

The museum looks at transport and industrial heritage. The Pumphouse holds the original pair of Marshall steam engines and a collection of smaller engines and pumps. The Fire Collection runs from late Victorian hand-drawn pumps to a modern fire engine seen in television dramas. Two 1967 Victoria line tube carriages show an early automatic underground railway, and a model railway shows the Liverpool to Chingford line in several periods.

The engines are run on Sundays. Entry is free and donations are welcome, and the buildings and carriages are also used as a filming and photography location.

Highlights

• Grade II listed Marshall steam engines in a Victorian pumping station
• Fire collection from Victorian pumps to a television-famous fire engine
• Two 1967 Victoria line tube carriages
• Model railway of the Liverpool to Chingford line
• Free entry on Sundays

Permanent exhibitions

• The Pumphouse – The original pair of Marshall steam engines with smaller engines and pumps in a listed Victorian pumping station.
• Fire Collection – Fire-fighting equipment from late Victorian pumps and ladder carts to a modern fire engine.
• Tube carriages – Two 1967 stock Victoria line carriages, one kept with its 1960s look.

Founded

1997

Operated by

Heritage and Communities Trust

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Entry is free and donations are welcome.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum says the tube carriages are popular with families, and the model railway features Thomas the Tank Engine.

Getting there & parking

The what3words address is ///thus.monkey.vines.

Amenities & dining

Meals can be eaten on board one of the tube carriages at supper club events.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent

The Victoria line carriages, a half-size vintage carriage, a driver's cab and the Pumphouse can be hired for filming and photography. Rates are negotiable.

Plan your visit