WORLD’S OLDEST POST OFFICE STAMPED OUT
FEARS are mounting that the world’s oldest post office could be facing its final delivery.
Sanquhar Post Office, which dates from 1712 and is recognised by the Guinness Book of Records, faces a renewed threat.
It was saved from closure in 2015 when current postmaster Manzoor Alam – a postal history buff – took it over after reading an article which said its future was in doubt.
But the branch, which was opened more than 300 years ago
BY TRACY CARMICHAEL as a staging post for mail carriages, is now facing uncertainty.
Manzoor’s wife Nazra, who runs the facility, said she has lodged notice of her intention to quit with post office bosses.
If no buyer comes forward for the business, it will close at the end of the six-month notice period.
Nazra said: “I’m approaching 68 and it is quite a lot to handle. I’ve been doing it for five years. It’s a shame because a lot of people in the community use the post office. We do a lot of banking nowadays.
“It’s not just older people, we get a lot of younger people in because we only have one bank and if you don’t belong to that, you don’t have anywhere to go, so we do a lot of banking services.
“A lot of people like the fact that it is an individual post office and they like to come in rather than going to counters in supermarkets.”
The site is a big draw for tourists as well as postal enthusiasts and stamp collectors who visit to have letters franked with a hand-stamp bearing the legend: “The World’s Oldest Post Office”.
Residents fear they would be dealt a double blow if they lose the branch.
Resident Alison Williams said: “It’s really sad. The post office is such a tourist attraction, everybody who comes to Sanquhar goes there. It will be such a shame if we lose it.”