Bahamas – the story of a steam locomotive, by Peter W Skellon

Description

Bahamas – the story of a steam locomotive, by Peter W Skellon, published by the Bahamas Locomotive Society.

This is both an in-depth look at the history of the locomotive and of the people involved with the engine throughout its revenue-earning career and subsequent preservation era.

Set against the contemporary social background, the book charts the creation of this class of locomotive, its flaws, and the challenge to improve performance against the deteriorating quality of coal.

The story continues with the decline of the steam locomotive and the first steps towards today’s heritage railway industry via the ‘steam ban’ and the ‘return to steam’, through which Bahamas had its part to play, albeit with plenty of anxiety for those involved.

The story is brought up-to-date through the rise and fall of the Dinting Railway Centre, the move to the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway, and the overhauls undertaken necessary for it to be “…a working locomotive, not a museum piece,” a phrase often quoted in 1968 by Society member No.1, Alan Bidder.

256 pages 70,000 words, 300 illustrations. Size 274 x 215, Case-bound with dust-wrapper.

Available for delivery after the expected publication date of 4 May 2024.