Sorry coudln't find any references in the material I have to hand (most of my stuff is currently in storage as I'm taking time out to act as carer for a disabled friend).
The GWR did run a few coal hoppers but only for loco coal.
PO wagons were often fitted with bottom doors which could be used to supply a coal drop if the merchant wished to work that way.
Third option would be for materials other than coal such as broken stone.
Afterthought - A local gas works or some form of industry that used coal or coke in bulk might prefer drops if they took their coal in bulk by road (perhaps due to the lie of the land they couldn't have a siding ointo the site)
Thanks for trying, anyway.
I didn't realise that.
I'd wondered if it might have been to trans-ship coal from Highley to boats on the Severn, but discounted this - it would have made more sense to put a wharf by Victoria Bridge.
Also for GW-owned gas works (supplying gas for carriage lighting, etc.); they were fairly small affairs compared to the large LNER/BR design offered by Dublo, Wrenn, Airfix, Mainline, etc. Though used for gasworks traffic, the GW hoppers were apparently still branded "Loco". An article in RM during the late 70s/early 80s by Brian Huxley (I think) has a little more detail, but the author mentioned that there were no kits or RTR hoppers that readily lent themselves to modification.
David E. Belcher
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