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| General Post Office Sydney | |
|---|---|
 The GPO as viewed from Pitt Street | |
  Location in Sydney central business district | |
| Alternative names | Sydney GPO |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Architectural style | |
| Location | No. 1 Martin Place |
| Town or city | Sydney, New South Wales |
| Country | Australia |
| Coordinates | 33°52′04″S 151°12′28″E / 33.867716°S 151.207699°E |
| Current tenants |
|
| Groundbreaking | April 1869 (keystone setting) |
| Construction started | 1866 |
| Completed | 1891 |
| Opened | 1 September 1874 |
| Renovated |
|
| Owner | Far East Organisation and Sino Land |
| Height | |
| Antenna spire | 80 metres (260 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Sydney sandstone |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | |
| Architecture firm | NSW Colonial Architect |
| Main contractor | John Young (1866) |
| Renovating team | |
| Renovating firm |
|
| Website | |
| www | |
| Type | Historic |
| Criteria | a4., d2., e1., f1., g1., h1. |
| Designated | 22 June 2009 |
| Reference no. | 105509 |
| Official name | General Post Office |
| Type | Built |
| Criteria | a., c., d., e. |
| Designated | 2 April 1999 |
| Reference no. | 763 |
| Type | Post Office |
| Category | Postal and Telecommunications |
| Builders | John Young |
| References | |
| [1][2][3] | |
The General Post Office (abbreviation GPO, commonly known as the Sydney GPO) is a heritage-listed landmark building located in Martin Place, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The original building was constructed in two stages beginning in 1866 and was designed under the guidance of Colonial Architect James Barnet. Composed primarily of local Sydney sandstone, mined in Pyrmont, the primary load-bearing northern façade has been described as "the finest example of the Victorian Italian Renaissance Style in NSW" and stretches 114 metres (374 ft) along Martin Place, making it one of the largest sandstone buildings in Sydney.[1][4]
The building served as the headquarters of Australia Post from its completion until 1996 when it was privatised and refurbished. The scaled back day-to-day counter postal services are now located on the George Street frontage and the outlet is known as the Sydney GPO Post Shop.[5] The old General Post Office post boxes and Poste restante services are now located in the Australia Post site in the Hunter Connection, on the corner of George Street and Hunter Street. Despite significant internal alterations and additions, the façade has remained virtually unchanged and is listed both on the Commonwealth Heritage List and the New South Wales State Heritage Register, as recognition of its architectural and social significance to the history of Australia.[1][2][3]
- ^ a b c "General Post Office". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00763. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
- ^ a b "General Post Office, No. 1 Martin Place, Sydney, NSW (Place ID 105509)". Australian Heritage Database. Australian Government. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
- ^ a b "General Post Office, 1 Martin Pl, Sydney, NSW, Australia (Place ID 1836)". Australian Heritage Database. Australian Government. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
- ^ Thalis, Philip; Cantril, Peter John (2013). Public Sydney: Drawing the City. Sydney, Australia: Historic Houses Trust and Content, Faculty of Built Environment, University of New South Wales, Australia. pp. 112–117. ISBN 9781876991425.
- ^ "Sydney GPO Post Shop". Australia Post. Archived from the original on 8 October 2015. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
