Gatehouse, Kew Bridge Pumping Station, Brentford, Greater London
The pumping station was designed by William Anderson for the Grand Junction Waterworks Company. It started pumping river water from the Thames in 1838. Filter beds were dug to the rear of the gatehouse in 1845. The gatehouse forms part of Anderson's original layout of the waterworks. It contained the station's main offices, a room for the gate porter to check visitors in and out and meter rooms for monitoring the station's output. In 1903 after nationalisation and under the Metropolitan Water Board a laboratory was added for water analysis. This was a very early sign of the more scientific approach to water provision in the 20th century. The front of the gatehouse was damaged and rebuilt in 1918 after one of the first German bomber raids on London. Kew is the oldest waterworks in the world containing its original steam pumping engines and is the most complete early pumping station in Britain. It is now (2010) a Steam Museum.
Location
Greater London BrentfordPeriod
Victorian (1837 - 1901)Themes
