Ernest Dove was the owner of a successful road haulage  firm, but his main interest was model engineering. He constructed a number of steam locomotives starting with small models progressing to 7 1/4 and then 10 1/4 inch gauge. Coronation was the first 10 1/4 locomotive that he built, taking approximately 10 years to finish, being completed in 1946.

The locomotive moved to Christchurch, where it remained for 20 years alongside the boundary of Pontin’s holiday camp on the roughly half mile circular line.  In 1978 it moved to the new Railway at Syon Park in Brentford and ran until the line was closed in 2005. The  loco was then bought by A Thompson and moved to Eastleigh Lakeside steam railway and overhauled in 2007//8 before moving to the South Downs light railway, Pulborough.

The LMS Coronation Class was designed by William Stanier. They were an enlarged and improved version of his previous Princess Royal Class, They were the most powerful steam locomotives ever used in Britain at 2,511 dbhp. The locomotives were specifically designed for use on express services between London Euston and Glasgow Central including hauling the Coronation Scot non-stop express.

The first ten locomotives of the class were built in a streamlined form in 1937 incorporating a steel streamlined casing. Five were specifically set aside to pull the Coronation Scot. Although a later batch of five unstreamlined locomotives was produced in 1938, most of the Coronation class were streamlined. From 1944 until production ended in 1948, all-new engines were built in unstreamlined form and all the streamliners had their casings removed. The last of the 38 locomotives was completed in 1948.

Three locomotives were saved for preservation, with one in the National Collection and one certified for main line service.