People in towns and cities have always needed to communicate with people in the country.
From servants and nursemaids to professional people and the aristocracy, all were eager to spread their news to relatives and friends far away.
People in remote country areas had Queen Victoria to thank for their daily delivery, for in 1897, to mark her Diamond Jubilee, the right of delivery was extended to every household in Britain.
On the Victorian Picture Library website there is a picture showing people gathering round a city post box and chatting to the postman - perhaps they had just posted their news to faraway friends.
It was in the 1880s that the postman's workload increased dramatically, for it was then that the souvenir postcard became very popular.
The railways had made it possible for ordinary people to enjoy holidays and days out, and sending letter cards to friends and family (at half the letter rate) became common practice.
In addition, parcel post was introduced in 1883, and the postman's sack would have been swelled by books, newspapers and all sorts of other things.
The Post Office prided itself on the splendour of its uniforms.
In 1872 its letter carriers were issued with smart navy blue tunics buttoned down the front and with red stand-up collars.
Winter trousers were blue, and in the summer months these were replaced by a grey pair with red piping down the seams.
The reason for the uniform was purely practical; letter boys of earlier years were continually robbed, as were the mail coaches, so the guards were deliberately clothed in military-style uniforms to discourage thieves.
Earlier uniforms had been bright scarlet, which showed every speck of mud, and it was not long before the Post Office changed to a more practical colour.