Sheffield Industrial Museums

3 Inspiring Places, 1 Steel Story

Kelham Island Museum

Located in one of the city’s oldest industrial districts, Kelham Island Museum stands on a man-made island over 900 years old. Our interactive galleries tell the story of light trades and skilled workmanship to mass production. Learn what it was like to live and work in Sheffield during the Industrial Revolution and follow the sights and sounds of progress through the Victorian era and two world wars to discover how steel making forged the city of today and its impact on the modern world!

Don’t miss the mighty River Don Engine in steam – the most powerful working steam engine in Europe, the reconstructed ‘Little Mesters’ street with resident workshops. NEW! The Millowners Arms tavern, a working pub on site with traditional bar and Island café/bar, both open 7 days a week until late (even when the museum is closed!)

Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet

Catch a unique glimpse of life at home and at work at a scythe and steelworks dating back to the 18th century. Abbeydale Works was once a producer of agricultural tools and the largest water-powered industrial site on the River Sheaf.

It is now a group of Grade I and II* listed buildings and a Scheduled Ancient Monument. See workers houses, waterwheels, workshops, tilt hammers, a grinding hull and the last complete surviving crucible steel furnace in the UK!

The Heritage Lottery Fund project to revitalise the Hamlet is now complete and visitors can enjoy the new ‘All About Abbeydale’ gallery, craft workshops, cafe, shop and learning centre. Heritage Buildings have been brought back to life with displays and interactives and machinery and waterwheels restored. One of the restored waterwheels can be seen in action every Wednesday.

In 2020, Abbeydale celebrates the 50th anniversary of becoming a museum! Keep an eye on the website for details of special anniversary events and exhibitions!

Shepherd Wheel Workshop
Set in the picturesque valley of the Porter Brook, Shepherd Wheel is a unique working example of Sheffield’s knife grinding industry.
This water-powered workshop dates back to the 1500s and displays the tools of the trade for cutlery grinding. See the restored waterwheel and machinery in action and hear stories about the grinders who worked there over the centuries at this Grade II listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument.