Ryhope Engines Museum

The Ryhope Engines Museum, located in the village of Ryhope about four miles south of the city centre, preserves a complete Victorian waterworks in working order. The centrepiece is the impressive engine house with its pair of beam engines, which are steamed on selected weekends throughout the year — the schedule is published on the museum website. On non-steaming days the engines are displayed stationary and the museum is still worth visiting for the quality of the Victorian engineering and the well-preserved pump house, filter beds, and workers' cottages that make up the complete site.

The museum is run by volunteers and is free to enter on most days, with a small charge on steaming weekends. Getting there without a car requires a bus or taxi from Sunderland centre; it is not on the Metro network. Allow an hour and a half for a full visit.

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A story
The two rotative beam engines at Ryhope are among the best preserved Victorian pumping engines in the world. They were built by James Watt & Co. in 1869 and continued working as the main water supply for Sunderland until 1967 — nearly a century of continuous operation. On steaming weekends the engines are brought back to life and the rhythmic movement of the massive beams can be seen from outside the building through the large windows.

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