Letter Boxes

Local listing reference

LLHA0254

Description

The 1840 postal reform led to the introduction of Royal Mail letter boxes, in association with the construction of post offices in all towns and many villages. The first pillar boxes were hexagonal in form; a variety of designs followed.

In 1859 the first standard national design was produced; utilising a cylindrical design. One of two still-in-service First National Standards is located on the corner of Montpelier Road and Western Road (grade II listed). Another standard design was introduced in 1866 – the Penfold – which returned to a hexagonal design. A replica Penfold was installed on Madeira Drive in 1989/1990. The cylindrical design however proved more effective and the 1879 design returned to this shape. Subsequent designs all largely followed this design; radical departures from it only appeared in the 1960s and 1980s. Wall boxes were introduced from 1857 and ceased in the 1980s due to the additional costs incurred in maintaining and removing boxes from within walls.  Lamp boxes were introduced in 1896 in London and later rolled out across the country. Originally green in order to blend in to their surroundings, the iconic ‘pillar box red’ was adopted in 1874. 

The design for letter boxes incorporated a royal cipher. For a few years under Victoria’s reign, this was omitted (1883 to 1887).  Those boxes without a royal cipher are commonly known as ‘anonymous boxes’.

There are now over 85,000 boxes in England alone. Historic England and Royal Mail (with the approval of DCMS) agreed a policy in principle of retention and conservation for all letter boxes in operational service in their existing locations.  Further letter boxes will therefore not usually be added to the statutory list.  A number of post boxes in the city are statutorily listed and some wall boxes form part of the curtilage of a listed building; these are not included in the Local List.

Sources:

• Historic England
• Postal Heritage
• The Letter Box Study Group
• Anatomy of a Letter Box
• Royal Mail Letter Boxes

A. Architectural, design and artistic interest

ii          The pillar box, wall box and lamp box are iconic designs

C. Townscape interest

iii. The iconic status of the letter box means that – whether in a conservation area or not – they contribute to the historic streetscene.

iv. The letter box can be of particular interest when viewed in association with listed buildings, historic parks or where they form part of a group with other historic street furniture such as phone boxes

D. Communal Value (non-compulsory)

ii. An iconic element of the British streetscape

E. Rarity and Representativeness

i. There are over 85,000 letter boxes in England alone, and therefore a degree of selectivity is required based on relative rarity.

Criteria for inclusion on the Local List:          

• All Victorian and anonymous pillar boxes. As the most historic post boxes in the city, these boxes merit inclusion on the local list
• All wall boxes and lamp boxes dating to or predating the reign of Edward VIII, as these are much rarer in the city.  The location of a number of wall boxes is known; no examples of lamp boxes dating to this period are currently known.
• All Edward VIII letter boxes. These are rare across the country due to the short time Edward VIII was on the throne prior to his abdication.  There is one known example within the city.
• Pillar boxes that form a clear group with other historic street furniture
• Pillar boxes with a clear association (visual or historic) with listed buildings

The known locations of letter boxes matching the above criteria are itemised on the below list, under the heading of the royal cipher, and included on the Local List. 

This will be added to if further examples come to light.

VR:

• Batholomews, outside Brighton Town Hall
• Carlisle Road / New Church Road (Pillar box)
• Church Street, junction with New Road, outside Waggon and Horses (Pillar box)
• Clermont Terrace, between nos.25 and 26, near church (Wall box)
• Davigdor Road at junction with Osmond Road (Pillar box)
• Dyke Road, corner with Leopold Road (Pillar box)
• Dyke Road, outside no.109, south of Seven Dials (Pillar box)
• Eaton Gardens, near junction with Eaton Villas (Pillar box)
• Eaton Place, outside no. 34 (Pillar box)
• Elm Grove, junction with De Montfort Road (Pillar box)
• Falmer Railway Station, downside buildings (Wall box)
• First Avenue, outside 11 Prince’s Court (Pillar box)
• Florence Road, outside no. 46 (Pillar box)
• Fonthill Road, opposite Ranelagh Villas (Pillar box)
• Freshfield Road, outside no. 97, near junction with Evelyn Terrace (Pillar box)
• Goldstone Street, junction with Ellen Street (Pillar box)
• Kingsway, junction with Brunswick Square, east side (Pillar box)
• Ladysmith Road/Kimberley Road, west end (Wall box)
• Lansdowne Road, junction with Brunswick Place (Pillar box)
• Marine Parade, junction with Broad Street (Pillar box)
• Pelham Square (Pillar box)
• Preston Park Gates North, Preston Drove opposite no. 67 (Wall box)
• Richmond Terrace (Pillar box)
• St Catherine's Terrace, outside no 3  (Pillar box)
• Stanford Avenue, outside no. 37, junction with Waldegrave Road (Pillar box)
• Stanford Road, opposite junction with Brigden Street (Pillar box)
• Western Road, junction with Lansdowne Place (Pillar box)

ANONYMOUS:

• Buckingham Road / Albert Road (Pillar box)
• Denmark Villas, outside no. 35 (Pillar box)
• Preston Road, outside no. 80a (Pillar box)
• Springfield Road, in wall outside no. 37 (Wall box)
• Stanford Avenue, outside no. 79, near junction with Southdown Road (Pillar box)

EVIIR:

• Beaconsfield Road, in wall between numbers 84 and 86 (Wall box)
• Richmond Road, number 5 (Wall box)
• Robertson Road / Kingsley Road (Wall box)
• Upper Hollingdean Road, junction with Hollingbury Road (Wall box)

GR

• Chailey Avenue, junction with Lenham Road West, Rottingdean (Wall box)
• Church Road, Portslade, opposite junction to Eastbrook Road (Wall box)
• High Street, junction with Steyning Road, Rottingdean (Wall box)
• Marine Drive, junction with Cranleigh Avenue (Wall Box)
• Old London Road, Patcham Post Office, no. 120 (Wall box)
• Ovingdean Road, opposite The Vale, Ovingdean (Wall box)

EVIIIR

• Warmdene Road / Dale Crescent (Wall box)

Dates of inclusion

2015 (Entry update 2023)