The Development of the Letterbox
In the pre-post box era, there are two main methods for delivering a letter; senders would be necessitated to get their mail to some Receiving House, or would await the Bellman. The latter would patrol the streets, collecting post from the community. In order to distinguish himself, and make his presence known, the Bellman would wear a uniform and sounds familiar.
It was in 1852 that the suggestion of road-side boxes finally became a reality, using a trial proposed for the Channel Islands. Three cast-iron pillar boxes were installed on Jersey to try out the new system.
The success with the experiment resulted in a different four being set up on Guernsey, one ofthese now forms part with the British Postal Museum & Archive collection. Letter boxes then began appearing on the mainland as of 1853.
However, there was as yet no universal pillar box design with which we are currently familiar. Design and manufacture was at the discretion of local authorities, also it was in 1859 that attempts were designed to standardise the structures.
Horizontal slits had become the favoured option over vertical ones, and had become the norm in letterbox design. Further read more improvements upon the original included the addition with the protruding cap to shield the contents in the elements.
As of 1859, the box ended up being to be accessible in 2 sizes; a more substantial and wider size for highly populated areas, plus a smaller version for elsewhere. However, the standardised pillar boxes didn't receive universal acclaim. It was up against the backdrop of such criticism that the Liverpool Special was formulated.
This prompted the Post Office (opened in 1861) to generate another standard letter box in 1866. Again, this was not really a huge success therefore, a further design started in 1879. This final design could be the one with which we have been accustomed to today. It was a couple of years before this that the iconic red colour of the post boxes became a standard feature.
Before now, preferred colour option was green to be able to blend in with the green British pastures. However, after a barrage of complaints that the structures were to tough to locate due to their camouflage, it had been agreed that bright red was the most suitable choice. The programme of re-painting lasted for as much as a decade.
For the people in particular, the introduction and refinement of letter boxes enhanced the capacity for sending and receiving mail with ease. With the exception of oversized parcel delivery, individuals were afforded access to a delivery service no time before witnessed in Great Britain.