Twenty of these six-ton three-plank, centre door open wagons were built for the opening of the Peel Line in 1873 from the Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon Co., Ltd., of Saltley in Birmingham.  Over time similar vehicles were delivered to the Manx Northern Railway when it opened in 1879, and further a later batch from Hurst-Nelson of Motherwell which brought the total to forty-six by 1926 including a one-off build in-house.

One of these wagons was used (with suitable side rails attached) to carry the military band on opening day in 1873. The Association built one of these from scratch in 2000 following an earlier project to restore M.78 two years previously. It has been given the number H.1, and has been through piped for vacuum brakes to meet with current safety regulations. This was the second project undertaken by the supporters, the first being the re-building of a ballast wagon M.78 and followed by van G.1.  The restored wagon sometimes appears in use with sheep rails.

See Also : H.1 (ii) Built By The Association