Queen Victoria Postboxes

Commuting, Day rides, Audax, Incidents, etc.
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IanH
Posts: 98
Joined: 7 Nov 2009, 1:50pm
Location: Wellington, Somerset.

Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by IanH »

I spotted a Queen Victoria postbox on my exercise ride today. How many of these long-standing antiques are still in use?
(And yes, I fear for my sanity.)
Bmblbzzz
Posts: 6261
Joined: 18 May 2012, 7:56pm
Location: From here to there.

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by Bmblbzzz »

I live on a street named after Queen Victoria and have a VR postbox on the corner! With a couple of others on nearby streets too.
Postboxer
Posts: 1929
Joined: 24 Jul 2013, 5:19pm

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by Postboxer »

According to this

https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/royal-mail-post-boxes/heritage-agreement-for-royal-mail-post-boxes/#:~:text=More%20than%2060%25%20of%20current,%2C%20Victoria%2C%20and%20Edward%20VII.

The Queen has 60% of the total, George V 15% then in descending order, George VI, Victoria, Edward VII, Edward VIII has 171.

With a total of 115,500.

Maybe just aim to visit Edward VIII's.

My aim back in 2012 was to cycle to as many of the gold ones as possible, still haven't done many, haven't even done all the fairly easily reachable ones yet. Hence my name on here.
ElaineB
Posts: 304
Joined: 9 Apr 2011, 6:15pm

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by ElaineB »

Here is the VR post box at Harwich in Essex.
I have also seen the one in Rochester, Kent.
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Bmblbzzz
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Location: From here to there.

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by Bmblbzzz »

ElaineB wrote:Here is the VR post box at Harwich in Essex.
I have also seen the one in Rochester, Kent.

Curious! Do you know why it's blue? Is there a story behind it?
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chris_suffolk
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Joined: 18 Oct 2012, 10:01pm

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by chris_suffolk »

We've a couple where I live in Suffolk
Jdsk
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Joined: 5 Mar 2019, 5:42pm

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by Jdsk »

Bmblbzzz wrote:
ElaineB wrote:Here is the VR post box at Harwich in Essex.
I have also seen the one in Rochester, Kent.

Curious! Do you know why it's blue? Is there a story behind it?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-48356512
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8276087/Postboxes-painted-blue-thank-NHS.html

... but no idea about that one.

Jonathan
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gaz
Posts: 14649
Joined: 9 Mar 2007, 12:09pm
Location: Kent

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by gaz »

A rare example designed specifically to accept portrait post rather than the more common landscape mail.
Portrsit.png
High on a cocktail of flossy teacakes and marmalade
Bmblbzzz
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Joined: 18 May 2012, 7:56pm
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Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by Bmblbzzz »

gaz wrote:A rare example designed specifically to accept portrait post rather than the more common landscape mail.
Portrsit.png

:D :D :D
AndyK
Posts: 1498
Joined: 17 Aug 2007, 2:08pm
Location: Mid Hampshire

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by AndyK »

The OP might like to investigate the #PostboxSaturday tag on Twitter. My wife's into postbox-spotting, and has charged me with photographing at least one a week for that Twitter collection while I'm out on my solo rides. I have to admit it makes me notice different things in the local villages, which adds a bit of variety to the same old rides.

This is possibly the saddest-looking Victorian postbox I've spotted (not local, this was last year):
IMG_20200719_172700.jpg

It's embedded in the parapet of a railway bridge.

For anyone wondering where it is, it's about half a mile from this famous church:
IMG_20200719_173514.jpg
Bmblbzzz
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Location: From here to there.

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by Bmblbzzz »

Hmm, wild guess, is that Kilpeck in Herefordshire? Can't think of a railway, either live or dismantled, within half a mile of there though.
AndyK
Posts: 1498
Joined: 17 Aug 2007, 2:08pm
Location: Mid Hampshire

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by AndyK »

Bmblbzzz wrote:Hmm, wild guess, is that Kilpeck in Herefordshire? Can't think of a railway, either live or dismantled, within half a mile of there though.

You win today's prize!
And yes, it's very much a live railway, running between Hereford and Abergavenny. No stations on it for miles, though.
Bmblbzzz
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Location: From here to there.

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by Bmblbzzz »

Ah, that line. And yes, I've been to that church. Also, I have the relevant OS map, which features those or similar carvings on the cover (though I think OS change their covers fairly frequently so it might not be on the latest issue).

I'll take my prize in cake. :lol:
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Mick F
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Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by Mick F »

Loads of them here I reckon.
I must make a note of where.

I do know that there's one less than half a mile from here set into the front wall of a friend's house.
Mick F. Cornwall
ANTONISH
Posts: 2967
Joined: 26 Mar 2009, 9:49am

Re: Queen Victoria Postboxes

Post by ANTONISH »

There is a very nice free standing hexagonal example in the village of Wormshill Kent - not far from the church.
I don't have a photograph but its on Google streetview.

A few years ago it was dragged out of the ground and taken away by a group of caravan dwellers.
Fortunately the police knew their location and rescued it before it went for scrap.
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