General Post Office, Kolkata

General Post Office, Calcutta (1905)

The site where the GPO is located was actually the site of the first Fort William. An alley beside the post office was the site of the guardhouse that housed the infamous 1756 Black Hole of Calcutta (1756). The General Post Office was designed in 1864 by Walter B. Grenville (1819-1874), who acted as consulting architect to the government of India from 1863 to 1868.

Dalhousie Square, Calcutta in 1910 with GPO in the background

The staircase at the eastern side of the GPO features a brass plate, which marks the eastern end of the Old Fort William. This is probably the only remaining of the ancient fort of Calcutta. Recently a marble plaque has been installed on the Eastern walls of GPO, which highlight the Brass Plate.

To the north of the GPO is the Kolkata Collectorate, which was once the office of the regional ‘Collector’, a designation invented by the British Government after 1857 to replace the traditional Zamindars.

Dome of the General Post Office

The GPO is notable for its imposing high domed roof (rising over 220 feet) and tall Ionic-Corinthian pillars. A postal museum that was built in 1884 displays a collection of artefacts and stamps. The Philatelic Bureau is located on the southwestern end of the building.

It is located on Netaji Subhas Road in B. B. D. Bagh area of Kolkata. The location is very near to BBD Bag Railway Station.

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  Kolkata GPO with some ongoing restoration work
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  Kolkata GPO Dusk View
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  Remote view from Lal Dighi
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  Kolkata GPO Night View

• Indian Postal Service

Wikimedia Commons has media related to General Post Office, Kolkata.

• Postage stamp on GPO