A masterpiece of engineering - a Victorian cathedral of ironwork. The glorious Crossness Pumping Station in London.
The argument is often made that works of mundane infrastructure cannot be both functional and beautiful. The sewage pumping station at Crossness, completed in 1865, reveals the folly, if not dishonesty, of that argument quite magnificently.
This is what we built when the dignity of the state matter.
In 1860's the UK parliament commissioned Joseph Bazelgette to construct an integrated sewer system for London. His ultimate scheme was an extraordinary feat of engineering, with tunnels, canals, and pump stations.
The project stopped all cholera outbreaks, drastically improved the city’s health, and made Bazelgette a national hero.
The project’s above-ground infrastructure was lavishly decorated. Especially the beautiful Abbey Mills and Crossness pumping stations.
What you see is the restored parts of the original condition of Crossness. Including one of the beam engines
When in operation, each pump could lift 6 tons of sewage at a stroke, so one revolution of the flywheel would move 12 tons. Â And considering that Crossness was equipped with four such engines, each running at about 10 RPM, that allows almost 5,000 tons of sewage to be moved every minute. Â
The Crossness Engine is thought to be the largest rotative beam engine still in operation in the world.
I lived in the UK and never visited this beauty and now I am sad.
