Building    From 23/9/1829  To 1910

General Post Office

Categories: Commerce

The first general post office in London opened in 1643, after King Charles I legalised use of the royal posts for private correspondence. It was possibly located on Cloak Lane near Dowgate Hill, in the City.

Later, in 1678, the General Post Office moved from Bishopsgate Street to a building in Abchurch Lane and remained there until the opening of this building on the east side of St. Martins-le-Grand in 1829, designed by Robert Smirke. Here Trollope began work as a junior clerk and here Rowland Hill transformed the Post Office into an efficient, greatly-loved institution.

Quoting from Mogg's New Picture of London and Visitor's Guide to it Sights, 1844, Victorian London describes this building and adds: "Here is the head of this vast establishment; but there are four branch offices, - at Lombard Street; Charing Cross; Cavendish Street, Oxford Street; and 266. Borough High Street."

In the 1870s a new building was created on the west of St Martins-le-Grand to house the telegraph department. This was expanded to the north in the 1890s. The magnificent Smirke building was closed and demolished in 1912. All that remains is an Ionic capital outside the Vestry House Museum in Walthamstow.

The National Telephone Company, created in 1881 out of a number of small local telephone companies, was taken over by the GPO in 1912.

The1870s building was the General Post Office headquarters 1894 - 1984.

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
General Post Office

Commemorated ati

General Post Office capital

185cm high x 160cm wide x 160cm deep and over 5 tons.

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General Post Office plaque

The General Post Office moved from Bishopsgate Street to a building on this s...

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GPO architectural sculpture

Immediately north of this panel are 7 other similar architectural panels rela...

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Penfold pillar box - EC1

Painted in the authentic green then in use, this is a reproduction of the Pen...

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This section lists the memorials created by the subject on this page:
General Post Office

Creations i

Michael Faraday - N7 - plaque

This plaque was first erected in the Sandemanian Chapel, at the same time, 19...

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Other Subjects

Rosa Lewis

Rosa Lewis

Hotelier. Born Rosa Ovenden at Leyton, Essex. She started her working life as a servant and graduated to become an itinerant cook for many of the famous families of the time. In 1883 she married th...

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1 memorial
Tom Thornton

Tom Thornton

Newspaper proprietor and campaigner. Born in Norwood. He became owner and editor of the Beckenham Journal, and used his influence in helping to establish the Croydon Road Recreation Ground. His pre...

Person, Commerce, Community / Clubs

1 memorial
Fountains Abbey pub

Fountains Abbey pub

Sir Alexander Fleming was a loyal regular. Legend says that it was mould spores from this ale house which blew through Fleming’s window, leading him to the discovery of Penicillin in 1928.   The Fo...

Building, Commerce, Food & Drink

1 memorial
Victor Tyre Company

Victor Tyre Company

See Ian Visits for the history of this short-lived company and an advertisement with the same image as the mosaic. Our advertisement, from Grace's Guide - a magnificent resource, shows a different ...

Group, Commerce, Transport

1 memorial
Samuel Jones and Company

Samuel Jones and Company

A stationery firm founded in 1810 by Edward Jones. A Museum of London photo shows one of their products, captioned: "Reel of 'Nulli Secundus' adhesive mending tape stored within a tin reel with a c...

Group, Commerce

1 memorial

Previously viewed

Madame Tussaud

Madame Tussaud

Born in Strasbourg as Marie Grosholtz. Her mother worked for Dr Curtius, a wax modeller, who taught his skills to Marie. In the French revolution made death masks of the executed nobles and royalty...

Person, Commerce, Craft / Design, France

2 memorials