The Steam Museum

The Steam Museum in Stradbally showcases model locomotives, working stationary steam engines, and mechanical engineering models from the industrial era. The collection reveals how 19th-century engineers built machines and what they accomplished with steam power.

The museum was founded in 1988 by Robert C Guinness and houses a Victorian Gothic building relocated from the Inchicore Railway works. These workshops were once where railway engineers designed and maintained their machines.

The museum displays items from the first transatlantic telegraph cable connection between Valencia Island and Newfoundland, telling the story of when people first linked continents through underwater cables.

Visitors can watch stationary engines in operation and join guided tours through the mechanical exhibits on specific days during the season. Wearing comfortable shoes is helpful since you will spend considerable time walking through the workshop areas.

The Michael Owens Power Hall contains six large 19th-century stationary engines that generate electricity to power the museum's lighting during regular demonstrations. Visitors can see how historic machinery actually produces energy for the site's everyday needs.