The Strumpshaw Hall Steam Museum in

Strumpshaw Strumpshaw is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is located on the northern bank of the River Yare around south-east of Norwich. The parish covers an area of and had a population of 602 in 245 households at the 20 ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

is home to a collection of

Traction engine A traction engine is a steam engine, steam-powered tractor used to move heavy loads on roads, plough ground or to provide power at a chosen location. The name derives from the Latin ''tractus'', meaning 'drawn', since the prime function of any t ...

Steam roller A steamroller (or steam roller) is a form of road roller – a type of heavy construction machinery used for leveling surfaces, such as roads or airfields – that is powered by a steam engine. The leveling/flattening action is achieved through ...

s, a

Showman's engine A showman's road locomotive or showman's engine is a steam-powered road-going 'locomotive' designed to provide power and transport for a travelling funfair or circus. Similar to other road-going traction engines, showman's engines were normally d ...

and a

Steam wagon A steam wagon (or steam lorry, steam waggon or steamtruck) is a steam-powered truck for carrying freight. It was the earliest form of lorry (truck) and came in two basic forms: ''overtype'' and ''undertype'', the distinction being the position of ...

which are run on special occasions and on the last Sunday of each month from April to October. The Hall itself is GradeII listed, and in the grounds are a

touring caravan Touring may refer to: Travel Vehicles * Touring cars, an open car * "Touring", the estate/wagon version of Ford cars * Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera, Italian automobile coachbuilder Tourism * Bicycle touring, self-contained cycling trips * ...

site. Neighbouring the hall and farm estate is the

Strumpshaw Fen RSPB reserve Strumpshaw Fen is a nature reserve managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). It is situated at Strumpshaw on the River Yare in the English county of Norfolk around east of Norwich. The Buckenham Marshes RSPB reserve border ...

Strumpshaw Hall

The existing house was built in 1835 by Thomas Tuck. The two storey property is built of red brick on a rendered base, featuring three bays enclosing sash windows, topped by a hipped slate roof and two chimneys. Within the central bay, extended by a pediment, it features a Doric porch. The main house was added to in the Victorian era with a lower two-storey service wing, which is three windows wide. It was listed GradeII in 1979.

History

The collection was started privately by Wesley Key, and his family still own the hall, grounds and most of the exhibits. Key eventually opened his collection to the public, initially on open days and latterly as a museum, which still opens between April and October. The museum is presently owned by Wesley's grandson Jimmy Key.

Museum display

The main collection is housed in an extended area of the former farm on the estate, together with some redeveloped outbuildings and a specially developed extension. Internally the collection includes a diverse collection of mobile and stationary industrial and agricultural engines, mostly powered by steam alongside some early internal combustion engines. There is a fairground and theatre collection, which includes a large Christie Wonder Organ. The museum has the last surviving example of a Garret type of Traction Engine still in service, a working Steam Wagon, a Ploughing Traction Engine with a

Threshing machine A threshing machine or a thresher is a piece of farm equipment that threshes grain, that is, it removes the seeds from the stalks and husks. It does so by beating the plant to make the seeds fall out. Before such machines were developed, threshi ...

, and an old plough with the

Ploughing engine A traction engine is a steam-powered tractor used to move heavy loads on roads, plough ground or to provide power at a chosen location. The name derives from the Latin ''tractus'', meaning 'drawn', since the prime function of any traction engin ...

. Externally the museum has a

narrow gauge railway A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structur ...

, which run on most open days. This consists of a Simplex diesel disguised as a steam engine, pulling a simple four-wheeled coach. The co-located farm has some

fairground ride Amusement rides, sometimes called carnival rides, are mechanical devices or structures that move people especially kids to create fun and enjoyment. Rides are often perceived by many as being scary or more dangerous than they actually are. This ...

s on site which are usually in operation and accessible to visitors. It also has a collection of rare breeds of birds.

Strumpshaw Steam Rally

The park is used for an annual

steam rally A steam fair or (steam rally) is a regular organised gathering of historic steam-powered vehicles and machinery, open to the public. Typical exhibits include: traction engines, steam rollers, steam wagons, and steam cars. Often, the scope is wide ...

that is held each year on the

Spring Bank Holiday A bank holiday is a national public holiday in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and the Crown Dependencies. The term refers to all public holidays in the United Kingdom, be they set out in statute, declared by royal proclamation or held ...

weekend. The event features several of the Museum's engines in steam, with about 50 other visiting engines present, as well as 30 miniatures in steam. The event also has large numbers of vintage and classic tractors and commercial vehicles on display with a daily parade.

Manufacturers featured in collection

Not all on display. *

Aveling and Porter Aveling and Porter was a British agricultural engine and steamroller (road roller) manufacturer. Thomas Aveling and Richard Thomas Porter entered into partnership in 1862, and developed a steam engine three years later in 1865. By the earl ...

– 3

s, 2 'tractors' * Burrell – 3 Traction engines, including 1921 ''Princess Royal'' * Foden – 1

Steam waggon A steam wagon (or steam lorry, steam waggon or steamtruck) is a steam-powered truck for carrying freight. It was the earliest form of lorry (truck) and came in two basic forms: ''overtype'' and ''undertype'', the distinction being the position of ...

* John Fowler & Co. – 1 pair of

s (15340 + 15341) * Garrett – 1 Traction engine * Marshall, Sons & Co. – 5 Traction engines, 1 steam roller *

Ransomes, Sims & Jefferies Ransomes, Sims and Jefferies Limited was a major British agricultural machinery maker also producing a wide range of general engineering products in Ipswich, Suffolk including traction engines, trolleybuses, ploughs, lawn mowers, combine harvest ...

–

Portable engine A portable engine is an engine, either a steam engine or an internal combustion engine, that sits in one place while operating (providing power to machinery), but (unlike a stationary engine) is wikt:portable#Adjective, portable and thus can be ...

Ruston Proctor Ruston may refer to: Place names ;United States * Ruston, Louisiana * Ruston, Washington ;United Kingdom * East Ruston, Norfolk, England * Ruston, North Yorkshire, England * Ruston Parva, East Riding of Yorkshire, England Companies * Ruston ( ...

– Traction engine *

Wallis & Steevens Wallis & Steevens of Basingstoke, Hampshire, England produced agricultural equipment, traction engines and steam and diesel road rollers. History The company was founded in 1856 by Arthur Wallis and Charles Haslam in newly built premises whic ...

– Traction engine ;Vintage tractors *

Field Marshall Field-Marshall was a brand of farm tractor which was manufactured by Marshall, Sons & Co. of Gainsborough, Lincolnshire in the United Kingdom. Field-Marshalls were in production from 1945 to 1957. However, the first single-cylinder Marshall ca ...

International Harvester The International Harvester Company (often abbreviated by IHC, IH, or simply International ( colloq.)) was an American manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, automobiles, commercial trucks, lawn and garden products, household e ...

;Horizontal engines * Robey & Co. ;Beam engine * A large

beam engine A beam engine is a type of steam engine where a pivoted overhead beam is used to apply the force from a vertical piston to a vertical connecting rod. This configuration, with the engine directly driving a pump, was first used by Thomas Newco ...

that was saved from a local water works is being restored. ;Rail locomotive * Cagney Bros. - 16 in. gauge

4-4-0 4-4-0 is a locomotive type with a classification that uses the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives by wheel arrangement and represents the arrangement: four leading wheels on two axles (usually in a leading bogie), four po ...

steam locomotive

References

* Old Glory Magazine No.229 February 2009 Directory of Engines in Museums

External links

The Museum's official website
{{coord, 52.6058, 1.4625, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Preserved steam engines Museums in Norfolk Steam museums in England Steam festivals Grade II listed buildings in Norfolk