Qualla: Cambridge Museum of Technology

Cambridge Museum of Technology: Introduction

Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit The wub, CC BY-SA 4.0. In 1894, Cambridge had a problem that every growing Victorian city faced: too many people, too much waste, not enough infrastructure. The city's solution was a masterpiece of circular engineering. Household rubbish collected from around Cambridge was brought to the new Cheddars Lane Pumping Station, where it was burned in destructor furnaces to generate steam. The steam powered engines that pumped sewage two and a quarter miles to a farm at Milton. At the Milton farm, the sewage was used as fertiliser to grow crops. The crops fed horses. The horses pulled the carts that collected the rubbish and brought it back to Cheddars Lane to be burned. Even the ash from the burning was useful in road-making. Nothing was wasted.

Image: The wub | CC BY-SA 4.0

Cambridge Museum of Technology: Engines Still Running

Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Ashley Dace, CC BY-SA 2.0. The museum's most compelling exhibits are the two Hathorn Davey steam engines installed in 1894, built specifically to lift foul water from the sump below the station and pump it up to the farm at Milton — a total lift of about 43 feet. One of these engines is still fully operati...

Image: Ashley Dace | CC BY-SA 2.0

Cambridge Museum of Technology: Decades of Adaptation

Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Ashley Dace, CC BY-SA 2.0. The pumping station evolved as Cambridge grew. In 1909, two 94-horsepower National gas engines were added to cope with increased pumping demand after heavy rainfall — these drove centrifugal pumps alongside the steam engines and could route sewage to Milton or to storm water tank...

Image: Ashley Dace | CC BY-SA 2.0

Cambridge Museum of Technology: Cambridge's Other History

Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Alexander Czuperski, Public domain. The museum presents what it calls an "alternative side" of Cambridge's history to the famous colleges. Displays cover the forgotten industries that ran alongside academic Cambridge: the Pye electronics company, which grew from a Cambridge workshop into a major British electronics...

Image: Alexander Czuperski | Public domain

Cambridge Museum of Technology: Green Space by the Cam

Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit The original uploader was William M. Connolley at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 3.0. The museum occupies a substantial site on the River Cam with open green spaces, a relaxed atmosphere, and a print shop, café, and education centre. The Pye building houses exhibitions on twentieth-century local companies. The building that served as the original public health dis...

Image: The original uploader was William M. Connolley at English Wikipedia. | CC BY-SA 3.0