We made the best of the Easter bank holiday and took the opportunity for a day out in Southsea. There is plenty of museums in the area but we decided to investigate somewhere a little be different on our adventure – the Eastney Beam Engine House.
Saved from development due to it’s Grade two listed status, the exterior of the building is beautiful enough on it’s own but the engines inside are also fabulous.
We were welcomed warmly and given some basic information about the building and the beam engines inside. Sadly the beam engines were not in steam on the day we visited due to a technical issue.
The two James Watt and Co beam engines were installed in 1887 to aid Portsmouths new sewage system. The effluent was collected in large holding tanks and then pumped out to sea on the ebb tide using the engines. The engines were superseded by more modern technology but they were kept as an emergency back up to the system until 1954. Renovations have taken place on a number of occasions since the 1980s.
I do love these late victorian buildings, the fact that beauty and design was incorporated into a municipal building – much nicer than the pumping stations of today (although I am sure there are people who find beauty in these things!). They seem to be churches dedicated to engineering. The Engine House has huge windows which draw in as much light as possible. The machinery and interior is so well cared for. All the brasswork is polished to a shine, the floors are all clean and tidy, it makes exploration easy and clean. As with any building housing machinery such as this it also smells amazing, with the scent of grease and oil!
Entry is free, but there is a nice big donation box and there is also a kettle if you fancy a brew! I loved my visit to Eastney, it is obviously run by a group of really dedicated and interested volunteers. It is great that this building has been saved, renovated and can now been shown off to the visiting public. I highly recommend a visit. Opening times are very limited so please check for details
http://www.portsmouthmuseums.co.uk/museum-service/Eastney-Beam-Engine-House
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