Hongkong Post - History

History

Merchants traded in Hong Kong at the two sides of Victoria Harbour as early as before the British possession in 1842. They complained about the absence of proper postal services and therefore the Postal Department was established.

The department was founded on August 28, 1841 but the first post office (a.k.a. 書信館 at that time), situated near the recent site of St. John's Cathedral, opened later on November 12. At the beginning its right to operation belonged to the Royal Mail until its transfer to the Postmaster General on May 1, 1860.

On December 8, 1862, the Office issued the first set of Hong Kong postal stamps. Before that, only British soldiers in Hong Kong could use British stamps while other local residents did not have any. Until the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997, mail for British forces serving in the then colony used the British Forces Post Office number, BFPO 1, which was charged at the inland UK rate.

In 1989, the Office introduced automated mail sorting and machines installed in the General Post Office. Unlike mainland China, there is no post code system in Hong Kong, although one has been under consideration since 2000.

Since August 1995, the Office operates as a Trading Fund. Full title of the head of the Office becomes Postmaster General and General Manager of the Post Office Trading Fund (Chinese: 香港郵政署長兼郵政署營運基金總經理).

Before 1997, the post boxes were painted red as in the United Kingdom, and was engraved with a British Royal Coat of Arms. After the transfer of sovereignty in 1997, the livery of the drop-off boxes has become green, with the new Hongkong Post logo. As of December 2011, only 59 colonial post boxes bearing the royal insignia are still in service on the streets of Hong Kong.