The Development of the Letterbox

· 2 min read
The Development of the Letterbox

In the pre-post box era, there are two main methods for delivering correspondence; senders can be necessitated to bring their mail with a Receiving House, or would await the Bellman. The latter would patrol the streets, collecting post from your community. In order to distinguish himself, also to make his presence known, the Bellman might wear a uniform and sounds familiar.
It was at 1852 that the suggestion of road-side boxes finally became a reality, with a trial proposed to the Channel Islands. Three cast-iron pillar boxes were attached to Jersey to try out the modern system.
The success in the experiment triggered one more four being attached to Guernsey, one ofthese now forms part in the British Postal Museum & Archive collection. Letter boxes then began appearing for the mainland at the time of 1853.
However, there were confirmed no universal pillar box design that we're currently familiar. Design and manufacture was on the discretion of local authorities, and it was in 1859 that attempts were designed to standardise the structures.
Horizontal slits took over as the favoured option over vertical ones, and took over as norm in letterbox design. Further improvements upon the initial included the addition of the protruding cap to shield the contents through the elements.
As of 1859, this area ended up being be for sale in 2 sizes; a bigger and wider size for highly populated areas, as well as a smaller version for elsewhere. However, the standardised pillar boxes did not receive universal acclaim. It was contrary to the backdrop of which criticism how the Liverpool Special was formulated.
This prompted the Post Office (opened in 1861) to generate another standard letter box in 1866. Again, this became not really a huge success and so, an additional design started in 1879. This final design could be the one that we have been accustomed to today. It was 24 months just before this how the iconic red colour of the post boxes became a standard feature.
Before this time, preferred colour option was green so that you can blend in using the green British pastures. However, following a barrage of complaints how the structures were to tough to locate because of their camouflage, it absolutely was agreed that bright red was the most suitable choice. The programme of re-painting lasted for 10 years.
For  modern letterbox  at large, the introduction and refinement of letter boxes enhanced the ability for sending and receiving mail easily. With the exception of oversized parcel delivery, everyone was afforded access to a delivery service nothing you've seen prior witnessed in Great Britain.