Opened in 1838, the Kew Bridge site and much of the surrounding area was owned by the Grand Junction Water Works (GJWW) Company. It was the third location used by the GJWW in their quest to find cleaner water.

By 1900, Kew Bridge Waterworks was part of a major water supply operation in London, employing around 80 men. The clean and constant supply of water pumped by Kew Bridge helped London to grow.

In 1902, the Government created the Metropolitan Water Board (MWB). It soon became clear that the Kew Bridge site did not fit into the MWB’s future development plans. By 1959, most of the workers had been retired and the reservoirs and filter beds had been closed down.

In June 1944, the MWB formally designated Kew Bridge Water Works as a ‘Museum Pumping Station’. The intention was to preserve the site’s artefacts, engines and architecture, and provide a centre for other historic artefacts from elsewhere.

The Kew Bridge Engines Trust was formed in 1974 by a group of volunteer enthusiasts. They persuaded the MWB to let them take on the opening of Kew Bridge Pumping Station to the public. By the early 1990s, the last of the water company staff had left the Kew Bridge site, leaving it completely to the museum.

Following a major redevelopment, Kew Bridge Engines Trust reopened as the London Museum of Water & Steam in 2014.

The museum buildings were once part of a working pumping station and waterworks site which covered a much larger area. Most of the historic buildings and machinery have survived but the large area of filter beds and reservoirs that used to surround them is almost completely built over.

The buildings near the entrance of the museum are the original workshops and date from 1838. Among the workshops is the original blacksmiths’ forge. The mechanical workshop still features the leather belts, pulleys and shafts that powered the workshop machinery. Today some of the workshop range is used by artists and craftspeople.

Many large waterworks had a railway on site to move the large quantities of coal required to feed the boilers. At Kew Bridge, an underground railway was used to move coal from the company’s riverside wharf to the boiler houses. The museum's present railway is not original, but represents the important role that railways played on large waterworks sites.

The dominant feature of the museum today is the brick tower, dating from 1867. It is not a chimney, but a standpipe tower; a safety device to protect the engines and mains pipes from damage that could be caused by sudden water pressure changes.

Though the pumping station buildings at Kew Bridge were functional structures, the architects who designed them often took a great deal of care to make them look aesthetically pleasing. The various buildings on site were constructed at different times so there are a variety of styles and design. Each has its own decorative styling that was appropriate to the era, available budget and the architect’s taste.

When it was first built the pumping station had a prominent frontage that faced the Thames and was probably visible from the Royal Palace and Kew Gardens. With this in mind the architect ensured that the main building was in keeping with the grand style, making it similar to the country mansion houses of the day.

As modern building development spreads across the region, the London Museum of Water & Steam represents a fine example of Brentford’s remaining historic architecture. The museum is housed in a unique collection of Grade I and II listed buildings that are historic monuments in their own right.