CROWDS gathered at a Herefordshire firm as it marked its 50th anniversary.

Alan Keef Ltd, near Ross-on-Wye, held its annual open day with over 600 people turning up by 1pm.

They had paid to come in and more continued to arrive as the afternoon went on.

The proceeds of the day will be used to support the village church in Lea near Ross-on-Wye, where the firm’s workshops stand on the outskirts.

Apart from a day out in the sunshine visitors were attracted by the prospect of three narrow gauge steam locomotives Woto, Taffy, and Peter Pan taking turns to give short train rides, along with a chance to see other locomotives being built or maintained in the workshops.

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Hereford Times: Successful first public steaming of the new Corris Railway Falcon steam locomotive "No. 10" at Alan Keef Limited, Lea, near Ross on Wye.Picture: Alf OxfordSuccessful first public steaming of the new Corris Railway Falcon steam locomotive "No. 10" at Alan Keef Limited, Lea, near Ross on Wye.Picture: Alf Oxford (Image: Alf Oxford)

An exhibition traced the half-century of the firm while a book detailing the locomotive built by the firm in that time for miniature and narrow-gauge railways was selling well.

Many narrow-gauge railway enthusiasts were attracted by the first public steaming of a new steam locomotive being built for the Corris Railway in mid-Wales which ran back and forth on a short demonstration line at intervals during the day.

Several Corris Railway Society members were on hand to talk about their new Falcon loco which will need a further twenty thousand pounds to be raised and spent to get the engine into service on the narrow-gauge line in the Dulas Valley north of Machynlleth.