The Tourist Information Dublin website
[visit link] tells us:
"The General Post Office (locally
referred to as The GPO) ("Ard-Oifig an Phoist" in Irish) in Dublin is the
headquarters of the Irish postal service, An Post. Normal post office services
are still available in the building. A historic landmark situated in the centre
of O'Connell Street, the GPO is one of Ireland's most famous buildings, and was
the last of the great Georgian public buildings erected in the
capital.
Construction of the purpose built
offices began in August 1814, and was completed in January 1818, at a cost of
£50,000.
The building was designed by
architect Francis Johnston in Greek revival style. The main section was made
using Wicklow granite and the portico of Portland stone.
The statues on the roof, by
sculptor John Smyth, are of Hibernia, a classical representation in female form
of the island of Ireland, with Fidelity to one side and Mercury to the
other.
During the 1916 Easter Rising, the
GPO was one of three Dublin landmarks to be destroyed in the fighting. The GPO
was rebuilt and reopened in 1929.
The 1916 Proclamation is one of the
most important documents of modern Irish history. Shortly before mid-day on
Easter Monday, Padraig Pearse, standing outside the GPO, read out the
Proclamation declaring Ireland a sovereign and independent Republic. Copies were
then pasted up on buildings around the city centre.
An Post's copy is one of the few to
have survived the turmoil of that Easter Week and the passage of nearly a
century. It is now on public display in the An Post Museum."
The Irish Post website [visit link] tells us about post in
Ireland:
"Before cheap postage in 1840, the
Post Office in Ireland mainly served the wealthy, the educated and the State
itself. With increased literacy and railway transport, however, the post became
something open to and appreciated by all.
Its services expanded greatly
during Victorian times as it became the principal administrative arm of
Government. It maintained a precious link with emigrants, helped people save and
send money and brought the wonders of the telegraph and later the telephone to
isolated, rural communities.
By the mid twentieth century, the
friendly postmistress and the weather-beaten postman were firmly established as
the State’s caring face within local communities. Preserving this tradition of
service, whilst making use of the best that modern technology can offer, is An
Post’s aim today.
The special role of the post office
in a local community is told in Gerry Kearney’s lovely family history – The
Taylor Family of Ardrahan Post Office: A History 1837-2012."
The Post Office also has a museum and
the website [visit link] tells us:
"Situated in a corner of Dublin's
GPO, The An Post Museum houses the exhibition - Letters, Lives &
Liberty.
The exhibition explores the
influence of the Post Office in Ireland and offers an insight into the role
played by Post Office people in the development of Irish society over many
years. From stamps and stamp collecting to An Post's copy of the 1916
Proclamation and the little known story of the staff who were actually in the
GPO on Easter Monday, the exhibition is a unique way to learn about the
importance of the Post Office in Irish life.
The Letters, Lives and
Liberty exhibition has lots to offer visitors interested in Irish history and
for those who wish to learn more about Dublin and Ireland.
There are short documentaries that
detail the local history of Dublin that show how the post office was involved
socio-political matters and there are other documentaries detailing the ways in
which transport and technology has changed business and everyday
life.
The GPO is not only the
headquarters of the post office in Ireland, it is the birthplace of Irish
communications. On Easter Monday 23 April 1916 it became a key positional point
for the rebels during the Rising. Inside in the An Post Museum there is a copy
of the Proclamation and a short film telling the story of what happened in the
GPO's telegraphroom on the afternoon of its capture.