Post Office
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The Post Office is one of the oldest public services. It began in 1635 when King Charles I, in an effort to raise money, made his Royal Mail available to his subjects.
Originally postage was paid by the recipient, not the sender, and charges were based on the number of sheets of paper and the distance involved.
In 1840 Rowland Hill overhauled the postal service. The sender would pay postage and charges would be based only on weight.
The world's first adhesive postage stamp, the 'Penny Black' (changed to the 'Penny Red' in 1841) was introduced. As the century progressed, the Post Office played an increasingly important role in people's lives. Now they could maintain contact with friends and family, whether at home or abroad, and those who had emigrated could send money home to help support their families.
The establishment of the Post Office Savings Bank in 1861 and the Parcel Post in 1883, enabled ordinary people to save, and businesses to expand their trade through catalogues and mail order. The Government used the Post Office to sell dog licences (1871), to distribute the Old Age Pension (1909) and Motor Vehicle Licences (1909) and Health and Unemployment Insurance stamps (1912).
In many small towns the Post Office operated from a shop, the shopkeeper having the franchise.
Original location: Castle Street [formerly Bow Lane] Antrim, County Antrim
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