Hamilton Museum of Steam & Technology

Great Victorian era water pumping station. Tour guide was very informative.

Absolutely Beautiful. We were there for a wedding with our bar Stocious. Can't wait to come back to do the tour. All the staff I met so far were extremely kind and knowledgeable.

Lovely tour and tour guide. They keep everything in working order and can turn the original pumps with an electric engine. Very neat to see.

This museum is one of the reasons I was visiting Ontario. I am a fan of the show Murdoch Mysteries and this is one of their filming locations.We got here on the Go Train from Union Station in downtown Toronto. We had to get a Lyft for the last leg, so we made it almost at closing time, but the guide was super accommodating and did an abridged tour for us. Fascinating building with many architectural and design details even on the inside.

This museum may look small and out-of-the-way, but it is such a treasure trove! For a small admission fee (and free if you have a Hamilton library card), you can get an amazing guided tour, which is offered a few times a day. And it was not your ordinary guided tour! It actually starts with a fascinating demonstration of steam power and engines, using small but well functioning models. Then, we were taken into the heart of the building, and I was so amazed by not just the intricate machinery but also the amount of thought the designers put into the architectural and artistic elements (e.g., the painted columns). You could see the machine being run, while my favourite part was going further upstairs and donning an oilers’ cap (albeit a clean version in a much better environment than what the workers had to endure back then).I would like to give my compliments to our guide, Julia (my apologies if I didn’t remember the name correctly). She exuded passion, like she had a love for the historic site from the bottom of her heart. She was also super friendly and fun, and was able to answer all of our questions without hesitation! Thank you, Julia!Also, be sure to walk around the grounds to experience the building from different angles and to find the best one for a photo! There was also a train show going on at the time of our visit, with a separate $8 admission fee. We didn’t attend that because of a lack of time, but we still spent a good 1.5 hour on the site. I could easily add an hour or two to that if I had visited the show or any other special events, and explored the grounds further.

Great place to look around with families and kids. After a quick tour of the museum, and some colouring pictures, the kids were able to participate playing with a remote control boats on a mini outdoor pool. We were able to go on a mini train ride around which was really fun. Plenty of parking, its free and on donation, we only had an hour, seems like not enough to really enjoy the museam.

We’ve enjoyed our guided tour very much.It was very educational.According to our lovely guide, this museum is unique because the steam engines are believed to be the oldest surviving of their kind both in Canada and USA.Make sure to book a tour online before coming, because quite often, it is sold out.They also have a small gift shop, outdoor family scavenger hunt and lots of free information leaflets.

My friend and I brought our kids here during the March break. Among us, we had 4 kids aged 2, 3, 6, and 7. This is definitely not a place recommended for the 2 and 3 years old. We hadn't done much research, and THERE ARE NO TRAINS! Lol. It's basically a pump house that was used a long time ago to pump water from the lake to a reservoir for the residents of Hamilton. It's still a very breathtaking historic location. The guide was very passionate about her presentation and very interactive with our group. I found it very interesting as an adult taking a step into a piece of history and the technological advances of that time. There are some toys at the gift shop at the entrance. There was also a craft kit available to build an amusement park ride like a roller coaster or merry go round with recyclable materials in the shed. Along with some dioramas and games, which all the kids thoroughly enjoyed, but I'm guessing that was a March break thing.

Visited in September 2021 as a small school trip.Guide was pleasant and gave us a thorough tour and presentation. Another guide discussed the water cycle with the children and had them participate in some fun experiments. There is also a small gift shop for souvenirs. We had lunch outside at the tables afterwards and could have participated in an outdoor scavenger hunt but ran out of time.Overall, it was a nice learning experience for everyone - I would visit again!