General Post Office Sydney

In 1862, the Colonial Architect James Barnet was appointed as the architect in charge of building the new post office. The existing building was demolished in 1863, and the postal service relocated to Wynyard Square, where it was housed in a 'temporary' building for the next 10 years.

Barnet's General Post Office is his greatest contribution to the built environment of Sydney. Designed in the Italian Renaissance Palazzo style, with Florentine and Venetian elements, it was built of Pyrmont sandstone, with granite quarried at Moruya on the south coast of New South Wales used in the foundations and columns.

The building was constructed from 1866 to 1892 in two stages. The first stage was completed by 1874, having taken five years longer to build than anticipated, due to labour shortages and the difficulties of laying the foundations. The building straddled the Tank Stream, which ran south into Circular Quay, between the present alignment of George and Pitt streets.

The second stage of the General Post Office, referred to as the Pitt Street extension, was begun in 1879, with the design modified to incorporate a clock tower. The building was completed by 1889, with the clock tower completed two years later. As well as being a timepiece for the city, for many years the clock tower served a meteorological purpose, telegraphing weather messages from the South Coast through the use of mechanically operated, colour-coded flags.

Source: Dictionary Of Sydney