Hobart South Post Office

[admin]

In response to Bmjones 's query seeking information about the South Hobart Post Office, here is a little information.
From the "Post Office and Datestamp Compendium" by John Hardinge:
"Hobart South, formerly known as Cascade Road, formerly Upper Macquarie Street.
Opened 1 Apr 1874 as Upper Macquarie St. Datestamp issued on or about June 1978. Renamed Cascade Road 14 May 1884. Cascade Road changed to Hobart South 1 jul 1895. No datestamp issued under Cascade Road name."
15 different datestamps between 7 Oct 1888(earliest date recorded) and 2,000.
The rare ones are the first datestamp "Upper Macquarie St"17 Oct 1888 - 31 May 1895(4R) and a Rubber provisional 5/5/1932 to 30 May 32 issued while the steel datestamp was being repaired(Hobart, South) - 4R.
"Tasmania: The Postal History and Postal Markings Part II" lists Postmasters/Mistresses as:
1899- 01 Miss C Hayton
1902 -03 A E Hayton
1904 - 06 Mrs M C Honey
I have never seen a photograph of this office.

Heres an image of the common Type 1 datestamp 23 Nov 1898 - 26 Apr 1932

Hobart-S.jpg (59.08 KiB) Viewed 18561 times

[Bmjones]

Thanks Pete for your welcome and posting this information. I have updated the notes that I have been compiling regarding the history of the Cascade Road/South Hobart Post Office with the information that you have provided and include them below.

It appears that the Upper Macquarie St post office existed at the western corner of Washington and Wentworth Streets from 1874 to 1883 when Mr Walter Bray provided the service. The post office then moved to 13 Cascade Road in 1884 where it was known as the Cascade Road post office until 1894, then as the South Hobart post office from 1895 to 1919. The Postmaster/Postmistresses at Cascade Road/South Hobart were members of the Hayton family from 1894-1904, Mrs M C Honey from 1906-1907, and Miss Absolom from 1911-1919. The identity of the Postmaster/Postmistress from 1884-1893 has not been confirmed but Mrs Bertha Newman is listed as living at the address of the Cascade Road post office from 1890-1893.

It is interesting that the earliest "Upper Macquarie St" datestamp is is from 1888 as 1888 is also the earliest reference that I have been able to find for the Cascade-road post office in the Mercury (see 4 February 1888 below). Do you have an image of the 1888 datestamp?

Thanks again,

Ben

Notes:
• Letter receiving houses were opened in Macquarie and Davey Streets in 1852 (Orchard 1996).
• The Cascade Road Post Office existed from 14 May 1884 to 31 December 1894 (Orchard, 1996).
• Hobart South, formerly known as Cascade Road, formerly Upper Macquarie Street. Opened 1 Apr 1874 as Upper Macquarie St. Datestamp issued on or about June 1878. Renamed Cascade Road 14 May 1884. Cascade Road changed to Hobart South 1 July 1895. No datestamp issued under Cascade Road name (Hardinge, 2019).
• "By 1890/91 a service was provided by Mr Walter Bray in Washington Street near Wentworth Street. Records show that, in 1896, Mrs. D.Hayton was postmistress. The post office was probably at 13 Cascade Road. She was part of a ‘Hayton dynasty’ until about 1910. Miss Absolom was postmistress at the same address in 1915" (South Hobart Progress Association Newsletter July 2007 No 241).
• Upper Macquarie Street Post Office opened on 1 April 1874. It was renamed Cascade Road in 1884 and Hobart South in 1895 (Wikipedia).
• A notice in the Mercury on 1 October 1885 regarding Telegraph Offices refers to Upper Macquarie Street operated by Mrs Bray on Washington Street (Trove).
• A notice in the Mercury on 4 February 1888 states that letter delivery will be from Cascade-road from 9 am and 2 pm (Trove).
• A notice in the Mercury on 1 January 1895 lists Miss D Hayton postmistress Cascade-road (Trove).
• A letter to the editor published in the Mercury on 25 January 1919 refers to the closure of the South Hobart post office from the premises it has been operating on for 30 years – ie 1889-1919 (Trove).
• Butchers, 1870 map of Hobart and Suburbs shows a post office located at the western corner of Washington and Wentworth Streets (https://stors.tas.gov.au/ILS/SD_ILS-1280)
• Printed Town Chart series map AF819-1-221 of the Town of Wellington (circa 1903-1907) shows the location of a post office at 13 Cascade Rd (https://stors.tas.gov.au/AI/AF819-1-221)
• "Tasmania: The Postal History and Postal Markings Part II" (Avery & Edwards, 1975) lists Postmasters/Mistresses as:
1899-01 Miss C Hayton
1902-03 A E Hayton
1904-06 Mrs M C Honey
* "Wise Hobart Street Directory" (https://stors.tas.gov.au/ILS/SD_ILS-981598) lists 13 Cascade Rd as the Cascade Post Office from 1894-1919 and the resident/Postmaster/Mistress as:
1890-93 Mrs Bertha Newman
1894-95 Hayton D
1896-97 Miss Fanny Fisher
1898-01 Miss C Hayton
1902-04 Miss A E Hayton
1905 Miss Alice Johnston
1906-07 Mrs M C Honey
1908 Mrs E A Osborne
1909 Mrs B Fairweather
1910 ?
1911-1914 Miss B Absolom
1915-1919 Miss B Absolom/Wm Absolom

References:
• Avery, Purves & Edwards, Ingles 1975. Tasmania: The Postal History and Postal Markings Part II. The Royal Philatelic Society of Victoria
• Orchard, A.E 1996. The Post Offices of Tasmania: Openings and Closures 1812 to 1991. Postal History Study Group, Tasmanian Philatelic Society
• Hardinge, John 2019. Tasmanian Postal History: Post Office and Datestamp Compendium. Tasmanian Philatelic Society

[Jerry Weirich]

Ben --Here is some additional information for you. These are postmaster/postmistress notices from the Government Gazette. I noticed that the dates of service on these postmaster/postmistress notices are not consistent with the dates you provided above. I can't say which are correct, but you'll have fun sorting it out. There are also two names I didn't see on your list: Mrs. E. Fischer as (potentially) the first post officer at Cascades Road and Miss Jessie Whittington as postmistress in 1894.
There is also an interesting notice that the conveyance of mails to Cascades Road being transferred from the mail contractor to the Hobart Electric Tramway. Hope this is helpful.

Cascade Road 1885-07-01 PM (Gazette,Tue,Jun30,1885,p903).png (155.93 KiB) Viewed 18539 times

Cascade Road 1890-10-04 PM (Gazette,Tue,Oct7,1890,p1723).png (85.53 KiB) Viewed 18539 times

Cascade Road 1894-05-14 PM (Gazette,Tue,May22,1894,p1135).png (174.4 KiB) Viewed 18539 times

Cascade Road 1895-01-01 PM (Gazette,Tue,Jan5,1895,p196).png (296.87 KiB) Viewed 18539 times

Cascade Road 1895-07-01 Hobart South (Gaz,Tue,Jul2,1895,p1305).png (396.99 KiB) Viewed 18539 times

Hobart South 1897-07-01 PM,TO (Gazette,Tue,Jul6,1897,p1135).png (158.91 KiB) Viewed 18539 times

[Bmjones]

Thanks very much Jerry for the information from the Government Gazette. Yes, there are a couple of inconsistencies between the information in the Government Gazette and Wise Street Directory but combined they give the following more complete chronology of postmistresses at Cascade Road/Hobart South:

- ?14 May 1884? - 30 June 1885 Mrs E Fisher (Gazette, 30 June 1885)
- 1 July 1885 - 3 October 1890 Mrs M C Bray (Gazette, 30 June 1885)
- 4 October 1890 - 13 June 1894 Miss F A Fisher (Gazette, 7 Oct 1890)
- 14 June 1894 - 31 December 1894 Miss Jessie S Whittington (Gazette, 22 May 1894)
- 1 January 1895 - 30 June 1897 Miss D Hayton (Gazette, 5 Jan 1895); 1896-1897 Miss Fanny Fisher (Wise Hobart Street Directory 1896-1897)
- 1 July 1897 - 1901 Miss C Hayton (Gazette, 6 Jul 1897; Wise Hobart Street Directory 1898-1901; Avery & Edwards, 1975)
- 1902-1904 A E Hayton (Wise Hobart Street Directory 1902-1904; Avery & Edwards, 1975)
- 1905 - Miss Alice Johnston (Wise Hobart Street Directory 1905)
-1906-1907 Mrs M C Honey (Wise Hobart Street Directory 1907; Avery & Edwards, 1975)
- 1908 Mrs E A Osborne (Wise Hobart Street Directory 1908)
- 1909 Mrs B Fairweather (Wise Hobart Street Directory 1909)
- 1910-1919 Miss B Absolom (Wise Hobart Street Directory 1910-1919)

The Wise Hobart Street Directory lists the Cascade Post Office at 13 Cascade Road from 1894-1919 and the post office is also shown at 13 Cascade Road on Printed Town Chart series map AF819-1-221 of the Town of Wellington circa 1903-1907. The Cascade Road post office is assumed to have been at this location since the name change from Upper Macquarie Street to Cascade Road in 1884, but I have not been able to confirm this categorically. Any more information that anyone may have would be most welcome. Thanks again,

Ben

[Bmjones]

The Upper Macquarie Street post office was located at the western corner of Washington and Wentworth Streets from 1874 to 1884 (shown on Butchers, 1870 map of Hobart and Suburbs). The post office moved to Cascade Road where it was known as the Cascade Road post office from from 1884 to 1895, then the Hobart South post office from 1895 to 1919. Despite protests from the residents of Cascade Road and a petition with 304 signatures, In 1919 the South Hobart post office moved to the corner of Denison and Macquarie streets (Mercury letter to the Editor, Saturday 25 January 1919, below).

Does anybody have photographs of any of these early post offices in South Hobart?

MercurySat25Jan1919SouthHobartPostOffice.png (249.59 KiB) Viewed 18414 times

[Ross Ewington]

An 'average' example of the UPPER MACQUARIE STREET Type 1 cds on a 1d postal card ....from 1895

tl1000.jpg (166.86 KiB) Viewed 18401 times

tl1000a.jpg (40.18 KiB) Viewed 18401 times

[Bmjones]

Thanks very much Ross. Apologies for what I’m sure is a very elementary question but does the JU stand for June or July? Is the 95 discernible on the original or is it written elsewhere on the card (I can’t really see much on the image). It is amazing to think that the card in the image was stamped in the front room of my home!

[Ross Ewington]

The longer you stare at the datestamp you will start to see the back of a '9' and a good part of a '5' ....fortunately, the message on the other side was clearly dated

JU = June · JY = July