The H van was the main covered van in use by the railways between 1860 and 1893. The other covered transports used were open wagons with tarpaulin covers and at times, covered cattle wagons.
The H vans were out of main traffic by about 1909. The early H vans were replaced on a one-for-one basis by new steel _I__ wagons.
From 1900, the vans seem to have been relegated to maintenance work. At this time a group of vans were built for Loco Branch use. The vans were attached to the main loco depots and were fitted out with tools and equipment to assit rerailing efforts.
The number group was eventually 1 to 966.
Several H vans were fitted with roof platforms for the wiring of the overhead cabling. The vans were modified in about 1915 and formed an overhead wiring train for contractors. The train was then used by the department for maintenance. This train appears to have ceased operation in the mid 1950's when bogie vehicles were fitted out.
Some of the H vans had been fitted with replacement underframes by the 1970's.
Until the 1900's, the H letter denoted a boxvan vehicle. From the 1900's when the majority of H vans were in use as departmental vehicles, the 'H' code became identifiable with vehicles in departmental use.