EHL165. GRVI (George the Sixth) Type 'B' Wall Box c1937-1952. 51 Meads Road, Eastbourne. what3words location: blows.sweep.manual

Cast iron post box with GRVI cypher (George VI) manufactured by W.T. Allen & Co London. 

The Letter Box Study Group: Type B manufactured by W.T. Allen is designated WB110. 

Historic England: -

The roadside post box was introduced in Britain following the 1840 postal reform which provided for universal affordable postage. New adhesive stamps made pre-payment of postage easy. However, letters usually had to be taken to the nearest letter receiving office which could be miles away. This, together with the growth in demand for postal services linked to industrialisation and urbanisation, led to the need for many more convenient places where stamped letters could be deposited. The novelist Anthony Trollope, a General Post Office (GPO) official sent to Jersey to make recommendations, provided a solution. He adopted a system used on the Continent of placing locked cast-iron pillar boxes at the roadside and the provision of regular collection times. His scheme began in the Channel Islands in 1852 and was extended to the mainland in 1853.

EHL155. GRVI (George the Sixth) Type 'A' c1937-1952. Trinity Trees next to bus stop outside British Heart Foundation shop, Eastbourne. what3words location: moss.tiger.varieties

Cast iron letter box with GRVI cypher (George VI). 

The Letter Box Study Group: Type A (62” circumference) manufactured by McDowall Steven is designated PB34. 

Condition: Generally good, although base appears corroded under paintwork.

Historic England: -

The roadside post box was introduced in Britain following the 1840 postal reform which provided for universal affordable postage. New adhesive stamps made pre-payment of postage easy. However, letters usually had to be taken to the nearest letter receiving office which could be miles away. This, together with the growth in demand for postal services linked to industrialisation and urbanisation, led to the need for many more convenient places where stamped letters could be deposited. The novelist Anthony Trollope, a General Post Office (GPO) official sent to Jersey to make recommendations, provided a solution. He adopted a system used on the Continent of placing locked cast-iron pillar boxes at the roadside and the provision of regular collection times. His scheme began in the Channel Islands in 1852 and was extended to the mainland in 1853.