A legendary steam engine passes through Cornwall

The steam engine is surely one of the greatest of all inventions. It kick-started the Industrial Revolution, and was crucial to Cornish Mining, the powerful steam-driven pumping engines allowing deep level mining of the copper and tin ores. So it was great to see a world-famous steam engine in action in Cornwall this morning.

As a young boy in Manchester in the 1950s I was, as were most boys at that time, a keen train-spotter, but never saw the Flying Scotsman, as it serviced the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER), whereas the Lancashire region came under London Midland Scottish (LMS).

This morning I saw this iconic engine for the first time, as it passed through Truro en route to Penzance.

The Flying Scotsman passes through Truro station

The locomotive, number 60103, built in 1923 and named after the Flying Scotsman service between London and Edinburgh, set two world records for steam traction, becoming the first steam locomotive to be officially authenticated at reaching 100 miles per hour (160.9 km/h) on 30 November 1934, and then setting a record for the longest non-stop run by a steam locomotive when it ran 422 miles (679 km) on 8 August 1989 while in Australia.

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