Caption:

Coal tipping at a coaling plant, 16 February 1911. The railway wagon is secured in a tippler, a device that tipped them on their side and the coal fell down a chute. The London & North Western Railway carried millions of tonnes of coal per year at the start of the 20th century. The railways themselves used coal for a variety of purposes. It was used to fire the steam locomotives, to power machinery in railway works and to heat offices and stations.