Three Children posting letters at a Pillar Box in Lagos

Three Children posting letters at a Pillar Box in Lagos.

A pillar box is a type of free-standing post box, it was introduced in 1852, The box illustrated carries the cipher of King George VI, and dates from the start of his reign.

The history of the Post in Nigeria dates back to 19th century. The first post office was established by the British Colonial Masters in 1852. It was considered to be a part of the British postal system.

It was a branch of London General Post Office and this was the situation till 1874. (1862) when the Post Office began its career as a full fledge Department, the Royal Niger Company (RNC) which was actively involved in economic activities in the country, set up its own postal system in Akassa in 1887, Calabar in 1891, Burutu in 1897 and Lokoja in 1899. Mail were being moved from these trading stations to and from Lagos by a weekly mail boat.

In 1898, the British Post Office established post offices at Badagry, Epe, Ikorodu, Ijebu-Ode, Ibadan and Abeokuta. In 1892, the Royal Niger Company became a member of the Universal Postal Union. By 1908, Money Orders and mail were directly exchanged with the German West African Colonies instead of via London, as it was the practice.

The first post-office in Northern Nigeria was established and located at Lokoja in 1899.

The Nigeria Postal Service Department came into being with the establishment of the Nigeria Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) on January 1, 1985.

Circa:1950s

Image Credit: Duckworth, E. H., 1894-1972 (Photographer)/ Herskovits Library of African Studies