Abstract: A latching mechanism for a railroad car hopper door. The mechanism includes, a pair of hook-like catches mounted adjacent the hopper door, a pair of latches carried by the hopper door for interlockingly engaging the catches, a pawl which engages one of the latches to prevent the latches from becoming disengaged from the catches, and a spring biased plunger for frictionally engaging the pawl to aid in the prevention of movement of the pawl out of the position where it blocks disengagement of the latches from the catches, whereby the hopper door is free to swing to an open position.

Abstract: A locking mechanism for a pair of hopper doors which are laterally spaced side-by-side transversely of a railroad hopper car. A specially designed locking pawl is provided for retaining the cams in interlocked relation with the hooks of the locking mechanism. The pawl is so designed that a single operator standing by the side of a hopper car, can operate both hopper doors which are mounted together for unitary rotation.