All About Aurora Postage Stamp Trains
4886: Hopper Cars

Prototype Information

Dating from circa 1929, ARA 70-ton offset-side "quad" open hoppers were used by many railroads across the nation. However, the design wasn't especially robust; consequently they started disappearing in the late 50s and were mostly gone by the early 60s. Roco's model is reasonably faithful to the real hopper, although it's difficult to assess which lines had them and which didn't. Peabody Short Line is a curious choice for railroads to represent, since this was a small, private railroad; likely the appeal was the colorful livery.