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The Brunel Museum is a museum in the Brunel Engine House, Rotherhithe. The Engine House was designed by Sir Marc Isambard Brunel to be part of the infrastructure of the Thames Tunnel.

This museum is in the former pump house for Marc Isambard Brunel's tunnel under the Thames - the world's first subaqueous tunnel. This is not the original steam pumping engine but was relocated from a lock pumping station at HM Dockyard, Chatham. Built by J & G Rennie of London, probably in 1879, it remained at use until 1977, latterly on compressed air. It is a most unusual design of horizontal vee (or angle compound) with a vertical crankshaft driving down to a centrifugal pump. Sadly, it was decided that it didn't fit in here and it has now gone to Preston near Canterbury.

The museum is in the pump house that drained the workings of Marc Brunel's Thames tunnel at Rotherhithe. This overhung hammer was built by R Harvey of Glasgow in 1888 and if I recall correctly came from somewhere in London's docks. It is now on display in the Royal Victoria Gardens, North Woolwich - Image It has obviously suffered a failure at some time and there is a patched repair on the frame above the maker's plate.

The Thames Tunnel was the first tunnel known to have been constructed successfully underneath a navigable river. It was built between 1825 and 1843 using Marc Isambard Brunel's and Thomas Cochrane's newly invented tunnelling shield, by Brunel and his son Isambard Kingdom Brunel. The full story can be seen at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thames_Tunnel The tunnel is now used by London Overground trains - see https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6487327 The story of the Thames Tunnel is told at the Brunel Museum - see https://www.thebrunelmuseum.com/ This garden is on top of the capped south shaft to the tunnel.

A museum of Marc Brunel's Thames tunnel alongside one of the original shafts. It then housed a J & G Rennie pumping engine from Chatham that was later removed. Since then a steel chimney has been fixed to the top of the brick base to recapitulate the station's original appearance. Pity the engine was removed.

This building and the adjoining shaft were used in the construction and drainage of Marc Brunel's Thames Tunnel - the world's first underwater tunnel. In the 1980s the museum housed here included this steam engine from Chatham Docks. It was a compound Vee engine that drove a vertical axis pump. It was built by the famous firm of J & G Rennie of London in 1885. Its slide valve cylinders were 20" & 32" x 20". It was later removed to Preston Services near Canterbury. In my experience in the UK, this is a unique survivor.

This building and the adjoining shaft were used in the construction and drainage of Marc Brunel's Thames Tunnel - the world's first underwater tunnel. In the 1980s the museum housed here included this steam engine from Chatham Docks. It was a compound Vee engine that drove a vertical axis pump. It was built by the famous firm of J & G Rennie of London in 1885. Its slide valve cylinders were 20" & 32" x 20". It was later removed to Preston Services near Canterbury. In my experience in the UK this is a unique survivor.

At Rotherhithe, London.

The boiler house was built to provide steam for the pumping engines needed to keep the Thames Tunnel dry during its construction. The foot tunnel was started in 1825 and finished in 1842 by Marc Brunel and his son Isambard; in 1869 it was converted into a tunnel for the underground - see Image

A museum in the Brunel Engine House, Rotherhithe. The Engine House was designed by Sir Marc Isambard Brunel to be part of the infrastructure of the Thames Tunnel.It held steam-powered pumps used to extract water from the tunnel. Since 1961 the building has been used as a museum displaying information on the construction of the tunnel.