in his stables one or two horses, the charge for one horse 23d. a mile, and 5d. for two horses, the latter charge including cost of a guide. No letters were allowed to be carried, or delivered where posts should be established, by any person, except such as Witherings might appoint, and by common known carrier. We find : 1642. June 14. pd. Mr. Halliwell for a horse A letter from London to Humphrey Chetham, dated May 9th, 1648, is marked o. o. 6. postage. 1654. Mch. 24. for carriage of a letter to Mr It is not before 1648 that we have any positive ocular demonstration of an official postmaster in Manchester. It consists in a letter directed: measuring folded three by four inches (in Allen's papers, Bundle A, Chetham Library), the substance of which I must give for its great historical interest. It runs : Mr. GREENE. Commende is Mr Chetham is our new Sheriffe, I Nov. the 28th 1648. Mr Higfeild presents his service to you. In former times the houses were not numbered-a thing only done at the beginning of the last century-and it was consequently required to be precise; in fact, the London Gazette found it necessary to impress on the public on September 2nd, 1667 (No. 188):— Whereas divers letters miscarry by not giving full directions whence blame is causelessly put upon the letter-office, all persons are desired hereafter to be more punctuall in mentioning the shire, there being severall towns in England of the like name and also the Street and place aljacent of note, if there be not a signe. The words "haste, haste, pray" were eventually omitted, as the post, when properly established, had a prescribed mileage to ride per hour. With William Dockwra (1660-1685), a London merchant, and the originator of the London penny post, new life was infused into the post organisation. Although * In consequence of the great fire in London the London Gazette, September 3rd, 1666 (No. 85), informs us: "The General Post Office is for the present held at the two black Pillars, Bridge Street, over against the Fleece Tavern, Covent garden, till a more suitable place can be found in London." September 17th, 1666 (No. 88): "The G.P.O. is now held in Bishopsgate Street at Sir Samuel Bernardiston's House, the same that Master Sheriff Hanson sometimes kept his Sheriffalty in." August 11th, 1687 (No. 2,268), mentions the G.P.O. in Lombard Street. It was the dwelling-house of Sir Robert Vyner in the reign of Charles II. (see London in 1731, by Don Manoel Gonzales, in Cassell's National Library). originally confined to the charge of London letters he also attended to the dispatch of letters to the country. He was the originator of postmarks, and had his principal office in Lyme Street, at his private dwellinghouse. There were a very great number of receiving offices for town letters, but country letters might be posted there, and were collected at a stated hour every evening.* One of his postmarks had a large, L in a circle, standing for Lyme Street. In his time a modification of the charge for postage took place, which I will now produce: The Hire of Post-horses is after the Rate of 3d. for every English Mile & 4d. every stage for a Guide. Post Letters may be sent from London on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday to all parts of England. Letters are returned from all parts of England every Monday, Wednesday & Friday. (See also Sir S. Morland's Perpetual Almanack, pp. 181-184.) We see from this that postage from Manchester to London from 1635-60, charged 6d., was now reduced to 3d.; while the hire of post-horses, originally 2d. a mile, is raised to 3d., and 4d. every stage for a guide. Letters could be posted three times a week from the town to the metropolis, viz., every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Manchester also, with the change of government, received a new postmaster. Of the postal arrangements in Lancashire additional * Joyce, pp. 38-9. light is thrown by an announcement in the London Gazette, October 21st, 1667 (No. 202). It says: All persons desirous to send letters from London to Liverpool, Ormskirk, Prescot, Wigan and Leagh in the County of Lancashire, or from thence to London, may take notice their letters will be conveyed every week by horse, which formerly went by foot and but twice a week. Evidently Liverpool was miserably lagging behind, when measured with the postal facilities extended to Manchester, for previous to 1667 their letters went twice a week by foot and now only every week by horse. I need not point out that the post-road, by which letters and packets were taken to Manchester, was the great Holyhead or Chester Road. For post-office service the kingdom was divided into six roads: the North Road, the Chester or Holyhead Road, the Western Road, the Kent Road, and the roads to Bristol and to Yarmouth. Our road went via St. Albans, Towcester, Daventry, Dunchurch, Weston, Coventry, Lichfield, Stone, Holmes Chapel, Cranage (occasionally some highwaymen swinging from the gallow-trees lining the road), and a little north of it branched off as a cross-road via Knutsford to Manchester; while the main road ran straight on to Warrington, where in 1681 Peter Nailor was post-master, going thence up direct to Carlisle. At Brereton (or Brewerton, as then called) there was, as an indication of the lively road traffic-for it formed a stage, a very substantial and comfortable inn, called the Bear's Head, built as far back as 1615. At "Holmes Chappell" the Red Lyon Inn gave shelter and comfort to the travellers "on the great *The deviation of the post-road viâ Knutsford was probably due to Sir Thomas Egerton, Lord Chancellor of England (1540–1617) having his seat here, and for his communication and correspondence with the Government. There were also post-roads to Newton and “Leagh" (Lancashire), kept for their parliamentary representatives' intercourse and business with Westminster. road." At Knutsford was the snug Rose and Crown, and here, not in Manchester, by some exceptional circumstances was installed, at the period we are just speaking of, the Manchester postmaster, Jeffrey Aldcroft (1667– 1672), where, as we are officially informed, "although living 10 miles off, he managed the town's business well & with several hours' less delay than before." The road then passed Dunham, and crossed the Mersey, a little before Stretford, at Crossford Bridge. It went on then to the bridge at Throstle Nest and from thence to Cornbrook Bridge, and finally surmounting Knot Mill Bridge, which crossed the Medlock, the post-carrier, making his way along narrow and slippery Deansgate, reached the Bull's Head Inn in the Market Place, not, however, before having blown his merry horn three times to announce his coming. In the Walmsley accounts* we possess a very interesting statement of expenses, incidental to the steward's journey from Blackburn, viâ Warrington, to London on the great post-road. His master also passed very often to the metropolis and to France (to the latter with six horses), but generally they employed three horses. The stoppages and cost of baiting is carefully noted down. A few items will, no doubt, interest you: 1671, Jany. 29. Riding Post to London 150 Miles at 1672, Mar. 2. My Board wages in London 5 weeks & 1677, May 1. My charges & my horse coming down 0. 16. 6. up to London 0. 17. 6. 0. 15. 8. I subjoin in the appendix an account in detail of his London journey, both "upwards" and "downwards," as it used to be called when going to London. |