Diagram 91 Hopper Wagon (Steel) for carrying Iron Ore 16ft 20 tons

This was one of only two all-steel mineral wagon designs produced by the LNW. The first was the all steel 20ton Loco Coal Hopper wagon to D65, sixty-three of which were produced in 1902. The advantages claimed for those vehicles was a considerable saving in tare weight over a similar weight of coal moved in 10ton wagons, and a much shorter train length. Perhaps the Company was looking for similar advantages when they introduced the D91 Hoppers for the Iron Ore Trade n West Cumberland. In neither case was there an obvious growing need for these vehicles since no further D65s were built and only sixty of the D91 Hoppers were built over the whole period from 1905 to 1912. The cost of the first 20 of the latter, built in 1905, was £105.18s.1d. For comparison a wooden 20ton wagon, D10 built in 1903, cost only £80.10s.10d. So perhaps the ever-frugal LNW could see no advantage in these all steel wagons especially since it is believed that their maintenance costs were no less than the wooden wagons. A copy of the Diagram Book sketch is illustrated below together with a fine official photograph of 42743 at Earlestown.

The first 46 of these wagons, built between 1905 and 1910 inclusive, were built on renewal account. Consequently, they would have taken the register numbers of the scrapped vehicles they replaced. Assuming the usual like for like policy was in operation at the time, these numbers would have come from condemned hopper wagons. No official record of the numbers involved has ever been found, but the two photographs show nos. 25378 and 42743, both of which are similar to other known groups of hopper wagons numbers.

These 20ton wagons were introduced in 1905 to improve the efficiency of the transport of Iron Ore in Cumberland. Presumably they were of only limited success because only sixty were built and none were added to the stock after 1912.

NRM/ETN 6A

The final 14 wagons were built 1911-12 and also were probably renewal replacements. All 60 wagons passed to the LMS in 1923 but nothing is known to the author at present of their subsequent survival. The final photograph shows one of these wagons in its LMS livery and looking somewhat careworn.

A second view of a D91 all steel Hopper Wagon, this time in LMS livery and looking rather the worse for wear with rust eating into the centre panels. Otherwise it appears to have all its original equipment. The LMS livery is of assistance to modellers of the period. Note that the WEST CUMBERLAND DIST branding has disappeared, other markings have been moved around, and markings from the LMS era have been added. In particular the LMS code, HPO, is just visible to the left of the sole bar.

Photograph courtesy R.J. Essery, CN 1453/2