Built in 1905, it became the engine house of the Llwynypia pit, and five years later became the starting point of the Tonypandy riots.
The Powerhouse is a Grade II listed building and steeped in mining history.
In 1910, the Powerhouse was damaged during riots after lock-out notices were issued to miners after they refused pay cuts in August that year. Three months later an official strike began by all those employed by the Cambrian Combine.
By 7 November, work at all the Cambrian Combine collieries had stopped, with the exception of the Llwynypia pit.
Riots broke out in the area of the Powerhouse and windows were smashed. There was also rioting in Dunraven Street and Pandy Square in Tonypandy on the same day.
Home Secretary Winston Churchill sent in the troops and the miners were forced to return to work in October 1911, on the owners' terms.
The Powerhouse was also central to the Great Strike of 1912.
The strike began in October 1911, when the Miners' Federation of Great Britain began a demand for the individual minimum wage for all workmen.
By March 1912, the majority of all mines came out on strike - within a week, the strike began to take effect, with railways having to cut services and suspend express trains as the price of coal