👻 Haunted place
National Emergency Services Museum
A Victorian police, fire and ambulance station on West Bar, where the original cells and one of the few surviving fire brigade observation towers in the UK still stand.
Photo: Wikipedia
Stand at the junction of West Bar and West Bar Green, a little north of Sheffield city centre, and you are looking at a building that opened in 1900 to answer the city's worst days. It was a combined police, fire and ambulance station — three services under one roof.
Today it is the National Emergency Services Museum, and much of the original fabric survives. The Victorian police cells are still there, small and plain and entirely unsoftened. Above the street rises one of the few remaining Fire Brigade observation towers in the United Kingdom.
It is an honest, slightly sobering sort of building, and that is part of what draws people who come looking for atmosphere after hours. Organised public ghost hunts are held at the venue, which means you can walk these corridors when the museum itself is closed.
🔦 You can join an organised ghost hunt here. Companies such as Haunted Happenings and Haunted Heritage run public overnight events at this venue — vigils, séances and all the kit in our sidebar.
Hauntings are told as reported — by owners, guests, guides and investigators — never as fact. The history underneath is often real, and sometimes tragic; we treat it with respect. Background from Wikipedia and the sources listed below.
The history behind the hauntings
The station at West Bar opened in 1900, bringing police, fire and ambulance crews together at a single address near the heart of Sheffield. For most of the twentieth century this was working premises rather than a visitor attraction.
The museum itself opened on 8 May 1984 as the Sheffield Fire and Police Museum, and on 1 January 2014 it took its present name, the National Emergency Services Museum, reflecting a collection that had grown well beyond the city. That collection covers the history of the Police service, the Fire and Rescue Services, the Ambulance services and the Coastguard.
Among its holdings are the H.M. Cousturads heritage collection, the Donald Sunderland Swanson collection and a UK Military police collection, alongside exhibitions on Victorian detective work, the RNLI and the Yorkshire Air Ambulance. The museum is a Registered Charity (1161866) and is run by volunteers.
The ghosts of National Emergency Services Museum
1 reported apparition, as the stories are told.
👻 The Victorian Cells
The original police cells
The museum retains its original Victorian police cells — bare, enclosed and plainly built. We have no documented accounts of specific spirits to pass on, and we would rather say so plainly than invent them. Organised public ghost hunts are held at the venue, but what the cells genuinely offer is atmosphere and the weight of real history.
National Emergency Services Museum in photos
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Visiting National Emergency Services Museum
The museum is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 4pm, and is run by volunteers, who know the building and its collections far better than any label can tell you. Allow time for the Victorian cells, the observation tower and the exhibitions on Victorian detective work, the RNLI and the Yorkshire Air Ambulance.
If you would like to experience the building after hours, organised public ghost hunts are held at the venue; check with the museum for dates and booking. Whatever brings you, remember that this was a working police, fire and ambulance station, and that its walls belong to the history of real people who did difficult work here.
Where to stay near National Emergency Services Museum
Nearest first — every distance measured from National Emergency Services Museum itself. Make a weekend of it.
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Somewhere to steady the nerves
National Emergency Services Museum: your questions answered
When is the National Emergency Services Museum open? ＋
The museum is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 4pm. It is a Registered Charity (1161866) and is run by volunteers.
Can I join a ghost hunt at the museum? ＋
Yes — organised public ghost hunts are held at the venue. Contact the museum directly for dates and booking details.
What is the building's history? ＋
It is a former combined police, fire and ambulance station that opened in 1900 at the junction of West Bar and West Bar Green, near Sheffield city centre. It still has its original Victorian police cells and one of the few remaining Fire Brigade observation towers in the United Kingdom.
What can I see in the collection? ＋
The collection covers the history of the Police service, Fire and Rescue Services, Ambulance services and the Coastguard. It includes the H.M. Cousturads heritage collection, the Donald Sunderland Swanson collection and a UK Military police collection, with exhibitions on Victorian detective work, the RNLI and the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, among others.
Your experiences at National Emergency Services Museum
Been on the tour, stayed the night, felt the cold spot for yourself? Tell the next visitor what happened — and if nothing did, that counts too.
No visitor stories yet — been to National Emergency Services Museum? Yours would be the first.
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Sources and further reading
- National Emergency Services Museum — Wikipedia — Wikipedia
Researched by the BritStays Haunted Britain team; last updated 13 October 2026. Spotted something we've got wrong, or have your own story from National Emergency Services Museum? We'd love to hear it.