Former docks pumping station, Swansea
This building, with its distinctive tower, was built by the Swansea Harbour Trust in 1899-1900 to house the steam-powered hydraulic pump for Swansea’s south and north docks.
The building is behind the sailing ship in the upper photo. Both images are shown here courtesy of West Glamorgan Archive Service. You can see another photo of the pump house on our page about the nearby former seamen’s church, now home to Mission Gallery.
For almost 70 years, the pump provided a supply of high-pressure water to operate machinery around the docks, including a swing bridge near the pump house (see lower photo). The bridge span rotated to one side to allow ships to enter or leave the South Dock. Half of the span is preserved on the dockside near here. Other devices powered by the pressurised water included cranes, lock gates and hoists for loading coal into ships.
In July 1899 the trust invited tenders for the “erection of engine, boiler and accumulator houses” near the South Dock lock. In November 1899 the South Wales Daily Post reported that construction of the new engine house was well under way and the building would “enhance the architectural attractions of a locality sadly in need of such”.
The tower encased a heavy ram which pressed down on the water in the hydraulic system. Large boilers supplied steam to the pumps which kept the system pressurised. In the 1950s the steam machinery was replaced by electric pumps. The pumps finally stopped when the South Dock closed and the lock gates and swing bridge operated for the last time, in 1971.
With the South Dock’s redevelopment as a marina in the 1980s, the former pumping station was restored and the upstairs part was home to a stained glass studio. The building later became a pub.
Postcode: SA1 1TT View Location Map
Website of The Pump House, Swansea
Website of West Glamorgan Archive Service
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