CLITHEROE POSTAL HISTORY
The earliest recorded Clitheroe letter was posted from Clitheroe Castle to Settle in Yorkshire. The charge was 8d which was double the normal rate from Clitheroe to Settle because it was a two page letter. In those days the post office was located in the premises of Messrs Baileys the wholesale grocers on the corner of York Street. Baileys was subsequently demolished to make way for the new Carnegie Library in 1905. Later the post office moved to Wellgate and then to Castle Street and Castle Gate before moving to King Street where the Old Posthouse Hotel is situated. The post office moved to its final location on the other side of King Street some time in the 20^th Century. It is interesting to note that in the 1840s the Clitheroe post office handled about 1350 letters a week. By 1899 that figure had risen to nearly 40,000. Shown below are examples of early letters sent from Clitheroe. Click on a thumbnail below to see the full sized picture.
Clitheroe to Settle, 1821. 7d rate.	Clithero (sic) to Lindale. Feb. 1840. 1d rate.	1d Black letter Clitheroe to Sheffield, 1841.	2d Blue letter Clitheroe to London, 1842	Mulready letter sheet. Clitheroe to Worcester, 1841
1d Red letter Clitheroe to Bradford. 1842	Stamp canc. “207” in bars: Clitheroe to Preston, 1845.	Clitheroe cds to Browsholme Hall, 1862.	Clitheroe duplex cancel to Enfield, 1868.	Clitheroe duplex cancel to Ware, Herts. 1890.
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