Introduction
Features of Abbey Mills include the listed pumping station and associated buildings, as well as lodges, gates and gate piers. The historic part of the site has opened for London Open House.
- Visitor Access, Directions & Contacts
Access contact details
The site is open by prior appointment only.
Directions
London Overground/Rail/DLR/Tube (Central, Jubilee): Stratford then bus. DLR: Pudding Mill Lane
Owners
Thames Water
- History
Abbey Mills Pumping Station was named for its proximity to the former site of Stratford Langthorne Abbey, the pumping station was built to lift lower level sewage into the Northern Outfall Sewer that took sewage from all over London to Beckton.
An extravagantly ornamented building it was nicknamed 'the Cathedral of Sewage'. Its 2 Moorish-style chimneys were demolished in WWII for fear they would be used as bomber landmarks; they had been unused since steam power had been replaced by electric motors in 1933. The new pumping station to the south was built in 1994-7, since when the old Pumping Station has been used as standby, for example in times of storm.
- Features & Designations
Designations
Conservation Area
- Reference: Three Mills
Features
- Pumping Station
- Description: pumping station
- lodges
- Description: lodges
- Gate
- Description: gates
- Gate Piers
- Description: gate piers
- Key Information
Type
Designed Urban Space
Purpose
Ornamental
Principal Building
Water Supply And Drainage
Survival
Extant
Open to the public
Yes
- References
Contributors
London Parks and Gardens Trust