TRAINSPOTTERS in Herefordshire were treated to the sight of a steam locomotive arriving in the county this morning.

The Glorious Jubilee Class 45596 'Bahamas’ steamed through the county as part of the Great Britain tour earlier today (April 16).

The 45596 was constructed in 1934 by the North British Locomotive Company in Glasgow for the London Midland & Scottish Railway (LMS).

It was a standard Jubilee Class locomotive, designed by William Stanier, the chief mechanical engineer of the LMS.

In June 1936, 45596 received the name Bahamas after the West Indian islands in the Atlantic Ocean which were part of the British Empire.

Hereford Times:

It was saved from being turned into scrap after several members of the public came together to attempt to purchase it with the hope of using the locomotive to operate special excursion trains.

British Rail showed a lack of enthusiasm when it was approached by the preservation society as the group encountered great difficulty in raising the funds.

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In early 1967, British Rail had agreed the sale of Bahamas to a scrap merchant in Hull. But the society had enough money, largely due to the offer of a sympathetic businessman of a £3,000 loan to cover the purchase, and high-level intervention within British Rail resulted in the sale to the Bahamas Locomotive Society – in the hands of which it remains.

Hereford Times:

The stunning steam train passed through Pontrilas at 10.05am today before then heading towards Hereford.

The loco arrived in the city at 10.21am, where it was due to stay for over an hour.

Bahamas then headed north through Shelwick Junction, Moreton-on-Lugg, Leominster and Woofferton before going through Shropshire and the Cheshire border.

It will stop at Chester at 1.49pm.