Dominica
Mural of the History of Postal Service in Dominica
On May 4, 1874 the first stamps for Dominica were issued. This stamp, from the
issue of 1877-1879 has the same design but is perforated 14 rather than 12.5.
Postage and revenue issue of 1908-1909 with multiple crown and CA
watermark depicting the waterfront of Roseau, the capital of Dominica.
Waterfront of Roseau in 2006.
The first three frames of the mural in the GPO depicting the postal history of
the island explain that in the 18th century ship's captains carried letters for
a small fee. In 1856 Anthont Trollope visited the island to organize the
postal service and a police officer was put in charge of mail delivery. In
1906 the steam vessel Yare began delivering mail to coastal villages.
The fourth frame depicts postmen carrying mail over
mountain trails during the 1930's before there were
motorable roads between villages. The next frame
depicts the Grunman Goose seaplane that carried the
first airmail in 1950. It also depicts a British West
Indies Federation omnibus issue of April 22, 1958.
The final frames of the mural depict the 1978 stamp
commemorating independence for the Commonwealth of
Dominica and show the modern postal system. It is noted
that in 1993 there were 37 post offices and 27 postal
agencies. The old and new G.P.O. buildings are also depicted.
The new General Post Office building on the waterfront in Roseau.
Bibliography
"Dominica." Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue. 1997.
© Grose Educational Media, 2006-2019
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