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At the Brunel Museum inRotherhithe, London you can immerse yourself in the history of the Thames Tunnel. The small museum and exhibition south of the river Thames offers much in the way of engineering heritage and atmosphere, but only brings most visitors tantalisingly close to its actual subject matter.
Once called the eighth wonder of the world, the Thames Tunnel was the first tunnel to be dug under a major waterway anywhere in the world. When it opened in 1843 it was 15 years behind schedule and over budget, but the 396m-long tunnel, which runs 23m below the Thames, proved a hit with Londoners.
Half of the city’s population visited within 15 weeks of its completion. At first the tunnel was just used by pedestrians. The first train was run through it in 1869, and it is now the oldest tunnel in the oldest underground railway system in the world.
This marvel of Victorian construction is as much a story about Marc Brunel and his son Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s indefatigable dedication as it is about the engineering they pioneered to make their vision a reality. The small exhibition does well to focus on the men behind the remarkable achievement but does not shy away from the technical aspects, such as the famous tunnelling shield technique still used today. There are clear and entertaining displays, and a collection of models and artefacts, such as medals and 19th-century guidebooks.
Once done with the exhibition, the visitor can inspect the original access shaft to the Thames Tunnel. The opening of a new staircase last year makes entry to the shaft a lot easier. A false concrete floor has been built because the tunnel is still in use by trains. Transport for London’s Overground trains have run through it since 2010.
Once at the bottom of the shaft you get a sense of history from standing in the place where all the workers, machines and materials would once have passed through.
But the regular rumbling of trains underfoot reminds you how much you’d like to see and walk through the tunnel itself. There are tours of the tunnel but, because they can only happen when Transport for London is carrying out maintenance work, they are few and far between.
An unhurried visit to the museum will probably take around an hour and a quarter, if you watch both the video on the Brunels and then the film about the tunnel that is projected onto the wall of the access shaft.
The entrance fee is £6 for adults, and proceeds fund the running of the museum, which is staffed by volunteers. The fee is a small price to pay for visiting such an important historic site.
The museum is open daily and is a stone’s throw from Rotherhithe station, or less than 10 minutes walk from Canada Water. There is disabled access for the exhibition, although you need to be mobile to use the new staircase into the shaft.
There’s little here to keep children entertained, but the museum would make an ideal diversion either before or after a Sunday pub lunch.
For more details, see: www.brunel-museum.org.uk
Things to see:
1. The garden: Landscaped grounds set over three levels circling the original tunnel entrance shaft overlook the Thames.
2. Midnight Apothecary: This “pop-up” cocktail bar sets up in the garden to offer alcohol in the evenings and heritage talks in the shaft.
3. Guided walks: Running all week from Embankment and Bermondsey, these entertaining themed walks give the full flavour of local history.
4. Concerts and shows: The museum regularly plays host to events and can also be hired for private and corporate functions.
5. Great Eastern launch site: The museum is close to the construction and launch site of I K Brunel's Great Eastern iron sailing steamship.