Class B1 locomotives were designed to be mixed-traffic engines and had various duties such as hauling express passenger trains and freight traffic. Due to their versatility, each B1 worked on main lines from East Anglia to Scotland.
No. 61306 ‘Mayflower’ was constructed in 1948 by the North British Locomotive Company. The locomotive was allocated to Hull Botanic Gardens and then transferred to Low Moor Depot in Bradford. 61306’s final trip, as the last B1 in service, occurred in September 1967 when it hauled the ‘Yorkshire Pullman’ from Leeds. Saved for preservation, it was based at Steamtown in Carnforth. At the time, 61306 was restored for mainline operation.
The B1 was bestowed the name ‘Mayflower’ in 1970 to commemorate the 350th anniversary of the original Mayflower ship sailing from Plymouth. In 2014, ‘Mayflower’ was acquired by Steam Dreams and was overhauled in 2015. The engine returned to the mainline in a BR Apple Green livery in 2019.
Its first mainline service occurred in February when it piloted No. 35018 ‘British India Line’ from Carnforth to Carlisle, with the locomotive returning via the Settle route. The Crewe-based Locomotive Services Group acquired the Steam Dreams Rail Company and subsequently ‘Mayflower’ in June 2022. In October 2022, ‘Mayflower’ ran on the Severn Valley Railway for trials.