Based in the original sewage pumping station for Cambridge, the Museum of
Technology exists to preserve and exhibit material that is relevant to
the Cambridge area, either by its use or its invention. Our collections
include:
- The pumping station's original equipment and other engines.
- A number of products manufactured by W.G. Pye of Cambridge.
- Letterpress-printing equipment ranging from early hand operated presses to power machinery.
- Instruments from Cambridge Instrument Company.
- Information and artefacts from local industries.
The Museum is based in Cambridge's old sewage pumping station, which was closed down in 1968. Up until 1894,
untreated sewage was flowing into the River Cam through a network of collapsing and overused sewers. Several
methods of resolving the problem were investigated, varying from repair to complete replacement. The method
finally chosen was to deepen and widen the existing sewers and add a steam pumping station to pump the sewage
to a new sewage farm at Milton. The original building was built in 1894 and shows a progression of the
development of power, from steam, through internal combustion, to electricity. The steam engines performed
this task for 74 years, from 1895 to 1968. The site is one of the earliest examples of recycling because the
city's rubbish was burned here to produce steam to power the steam engines to pump the sewage.

On Sunday 3rd March 2013, members of the Museum with staff, volunteers and supporters were joined by the Mayor of Cambridge to launch the new history/guide booklet of the Pumping Station. It was written by David Stubbings, designed by
Jigsaw, costs £3.50 and is now available from the museum shop.
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Virtual Tour
Take a brief virtual tour around the museum to learn about the development of the pumping station
and find out more about what there is to see at the musem.see more...
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Cambridge Instrument Company
Discover how a company founded by Horace Darwin fueled the advance of
the scientific instrument industry read more...
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Support us
Find out how you can help the progress of The Cambridge Museum of Technology by becoming a member
or even a volunteer. read more...
Upcoming events
For more information on the events listed below and all our other events, please see our
Events & Admission Prices page:
- Bank Holiday Steaming - Sunday 26th and Monday 27th May
- Morris Minors Display - Sunday 2nd June