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The Brunel Museum tells the story of the Brunel Tunnel (officially known as the Thames Tunnel).
It’s a small but fascinating museum that tells of a hugely significant part of engineering history.
The story dates back to 1825, when construction began on a tunnel to connect Wapping, located on the north bank of the River Thames, with Rotherhithe, situated on the south bank.
You likely know of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, one of the world’s most prolific engineers, but may not be familiar with his father, Marc Isambard Brunel, who was the driving force behind the construction of the tunnel.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel joined as Resident Engineer at the age of 20, helping to overcome repeated collapses and a major flood that nearly claimed his life in 1828.
You’ll learn plenty about the Brunels at the museum, and if you’re a history or engineering enthusiast, it’s worth a visit.
If you’d like to see their final resting place, you can visit the tombs of Marc and Isambard in Kensal Green Cemetery, one of London’s Magnificent Seven Cemeteries.
The Brunel Museum & Thames Tunnel
The 366m long Thames Tunnel was to become the world’s first thoroughfare under a navigable river.
It’s essentially a brick box 11 metres high and 7 metres wide, comprising two interconnected archways, and over 7 million bricks.
At the time, the Thames was the busiest river in the world, with 13,000 boats passing each day, and getting cargo to the south from the docks in the north was slow.
The tunnel was designed to speed up the journey, but was never realised because the tunnel was never connected to ground level by road.
It remained a pedestrian tunnel until it was sold to the East London Railway Company, which converted it into the world’s first underground railway line.
Building the tunnel was a remarkable operation when you think about it.
It’s easy to forget what an undertaking this was when modern tunnel boring machines can bore hundreds of metres of tunnel per week.
To put this into perspective, the longest tunnel on the London Underground is on the Northern Line, measuring 27.8 kilometres in length.
When the line was extended, it took two tunnel boring machines just six months to tunnel 3.2 km.
It’s no wonder the Brunel Tunnel took 18 years to complete, considering the technology available at the time, which was developed during the tunnel’s construction.
Although you can’t access the tunnel on foot, you can travel through it by train, as it’s still in use for the London Overground Windrush line.
The parts of the site accessible in the museum are the Engine House and the Tunnel Shaft.
The Engine House
The Engine House was designed to power steam-driven pumps that kept the Thames Tunnel dry during its construction from 1825 to 1843.
In 1961, the Engine House was repurposed as a museum, and today you can find an exhibition showcasing wider Brunel projects, along with artefacts from when the tunnel was a pedestrian thoroughfare, as well as a small but well-stocked gift shop.
The Engine House and chimney were Grade II listed in 1974.
The Tunnel Shaft
The tunnel shaft became the dramatic entrance hall to the Thames Tunnel.
To build it, a brick tower was sunk under its own weight to push through the soil, allowing the tunnel to be constructed.
The shaft and tunnel became a tourist attraction, reportedly attracting 50,000 people on the day of its opening and drawing a million visitors in its first year.
It was also the location of the world’s first subterranean performance, where an ‘underwater’ concert party was held.
However, be under no illusion.
The Tunnel Shaft is no longer grand.
It’s not much more than a 16-metre shaft in the ground.
There are remnants of its former days, with soot still visible on the walls, and you can hear the gentle rumble of Overground trains passing by.
However, that’s okay and doesn’t detract from what was accomplished here.
After all, you are standing in the world’s first caisson, which is used as a watertight retaining structure for constructing foundations in or near water, meaning every caisson ever built derives from this one.
What a legacy to leave behind.
Visitor Information
๐ Railway Avenue, London, SE16 4LF
๐ท Paid entry
๐ thebrunelmuseum.com
๐ Fri to Mon, 10.30 am to 3.30 pm
๐ 02072 313 840
Brunel Museum Photos
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