Lead Mining Museum and Wanlockhead Beam Engine

The Museum of Lead Mining is set in the picturesque village of Wanlockhead, the highest village in Scotland. A visit to the Museum can include a trip down the 18th century lead mine, a drift mine set deep in the hillside. At the Straitsteps Cottages you can see how the miners really lived in1750, 1850 and 1910. At the Visitor Centre, discover a fantastic display of rocks, minerals, gold, mining and local artefacts. Explore the Miner’s Library – the second oldest subscription library in Europe – which contains a collection Recognised as being of National Significance. Founded in 1756, the collection consists of 2800 works.

Close to the museum you can visit the only reasonably complete water-powered beam pumping machine in Britain: Wanlockhead Beam Engine, which was built in about 1870 to pump water from the Straitsteps lead mine beneath it. It was in action for about 40 years, until around 1910.