Winding House
Former Elliot Colliery winding house in New Tredegar with its Victorian steam winding engine, mothballed but opened monthly to run the engine.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The Winding House was built to serve Elliot Colliery at New Tredegar in the Rhymney Valley. It holds the colliery’s steam winding engine, installed in 1891 by Thornewill and Warham, a machine with two horizontal cylinders and Cornish-type valve gear. High-pressure cylinders were added in 1904, and the engine was still in use when the pit closed in 1967.
Caerphilly County Borough Council restored the engine and the listed building and opened it as a museum of the industrial history of the Rhymney Valley, with objects, documents and photographs about daily life during the Industrial Revolution. A major upgrade closed the site for some time before it reopened in 2008. Sources describe a café and gift shop being part of the visit while the museum was fully open.
The museum has since been mothballed by the council and is no longer open for ordinary visits. On the last Saturday of each month the building opens so that the winding engine can be run for visitors. In July 2026 the council’s cabinet backed a proposal to transfer the building to a community organisation that wants to create an education and wellbeing centre there; the plan was still subject to consultation.
Highlights
- Victorian steam winding engine of 1891 from Elliot Colliery
- Engine run for visitors on the last Saturday of each month
- Listed colliery building restored by the council
- Local industrial history of the Rhymney Valley
Permanent exhibition
- Elliot Colliery winding engine – A Victorian steam winding engine of 1891 that once raised cages of men and coal between the surface and the mine; it is run for visitors on the last Saturday of each month.
- Operated by
- Caerphilly County Borough Council
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
Admission is free according to the council’s tourism pages.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
By car
Parking available · 200 m to the entrance
A large car park is reported about 200 m along the road, with a signposted footpath to the museum.
Amenities & dining
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
