okka north Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 I appreciate this is a really strange question or questions but can you answer the following? Please appreciate I am a little drunk, but was sober when these questions popped into my head. What do you call them as technically they are not a post box? Has England always had the mail shutes on the front doors? Who thought of putting holes in the door for post? And why? Was it created because of the style of the houses? I grew up with a mail box at the front of our house so wondered why. Ok it's a long bus journey home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ValleyBoy Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 i Fitted one to stop my pet lab eating the mail:| Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ValleyBoy Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 Also stops the dreaded welcome wedge ,when you have been away and all the mail is wedged under the door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojo1 Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 I appreciate this is a really strange question or questions but can you answer the following? Please appreciate I am a little drunk, but was sober when these questions popped into my head. What do you call them as technically they are not a post box? Has England always had the mail shutes on the front doors? Who thought of putting holes in the door for post? And why? Was it created because of the style of the houses? I grew up with a mail box at the front of our house so wondered why. Ok it's a long bus journey home. they're called letter boxes and i think we've had them for a very long time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesandtwos Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 guess they came about as us brits were obviously far too lazy to walk down our drives to a mail box . also take a look at the avarage plot of land a UK house stands on compared to the US...postage stamp Vs half an acre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
do-a-bull Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 Although everyone seems to call them letter 'boxes' not sure where the box part comes in as if you were to buy one you would find them to be called letter plates IMHO a far better description. I think they were introduced with the penny post from the 1840's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purdyamos Posted September 7, 2006 Share Posted September 7, 2006 I volunteer for a charity whose office is in a restored building from 1836. The office was wired up to electricity, has central heating and computer and phone points, but the architect of the restoration refused to put a letterbox in the door because they didn't have them in 1836. Which meant that the charity couldn't get its mail delivered. We got a box, attached it to railings, and it got stolen. Progress happens for a reason! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
okka north Posted September 11, 2006 Author Share Posted September 11, 2006 If it's progress, why do so many countries in the world still have mail boxes outside and not as part of their door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grissom Posted September 11, 2006 Share Posted September 11, 2006 There is a good history of the letter box here, starting from the 1780s in Russia. Would love to have seen some of the dodgy letters ! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letter_box I also like the idea of having mail boxes weighing 40kg so they don't get nicked Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mod_Man Posted September 11, 2006 Share Posted September 11, 2006 Sorry i thought it was some dodgy sheffield Star headline about people getting strange stains on thier doors. It was'nt me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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