| Wanlockhead beam engine | |
|---|---|
| Straitside Lead Mine, Wanlockhead, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland UK grid reference NS873125 | |
 | |
  Wanlockhead beam engine | |
| Coordinates | 55°23′36″N 3°46′51″W / 55.393464°N 3.7808569°W |
| Type | A 19th century water pumping beam engine |
| Height | 13 ft. |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Historic Environment Scotland |
| Open to the public | Yes |
| Condition | Restored as a stationary exhibit |
| Site history | |
| Built | 19th century |
| In use | 19th and 20th centuries |
| Materials | Stone, wood and iron |
The Wanlockhead beam engine (also known as the Wanlockhead water-bucket pumping-engine or Straitsteps beam engine) is located close to the Wanlock Water below Church Street on the B797 in the village of Wanlockhead, Parish of Sanquhar, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The site is in the Lowther Hills above the Mennock Pass, a mile south of Leadhills in the Southern Uplands.[1] This is the only remaining original water powered beam engine in the United Kingdom and still stands at its original location.[2][3] It ceased working circa 1910[2] after installation circa 1870.[1]
It is a Scheduled Industrial Monument (SM90310), considered to be of national importance[4] and the principles by which it functioned were originally derived from attempts at producing a perpetual motion machine.[5]
- ^ a b "Engineering Times - Wanlockhead Beam Engine". Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- ^ a b "Historic Environment Scotland - Wanlockhead Beam Engine". Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- ^ David Carroll (2015). Dumfries & Galloway Curiosities. History Press. p. 26.
- ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "Wanlockhead Beam Engine (SM90310)". Retrieved 18 April 2019.
- ^ Lochnell Mine & The Wanlockhead Beam Engine. Wanlockhead Museum Trust. 2004. p. 9.