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Halifax original Post Office is now a hotel.

Halifax is a minster town in the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town has been a centre of woollen manufacture from the 15th century onward, originally dealing through the Piece Hall.

The town's name was recorded in about 1091 as Halyfax, from the Old English halh-gefeaxe, meaning "area of coarse grass in the nook of land". This explanation is preferred to derivations from the Old English halig (holy), in hālig feax or "holy hair", proposed by 16th-century antiquarians. The incorrect interpretation gave rise to two legends. One concerned a maiden killed by a lustful priest whose advances she spurned. Another held that the head of John the Baptist was buried here after his execution. The legend is almost certainly medieval rather than ancient, although the town's coat of arms carries an image of the saint. Another explanation is a corruption of the Old English hay and ley a clearing or meadow. This etymology is based on Haley Hill, the nearby hamlet of Healey (another corruption), and the common occurrence of the surnames Hayley/Haley around Halifax. The erroneous derivation from halig has given rise to the demonym Haligonian, which is of recent origin and not in universal use.

Halifax is not mentioned in the Domesday Book, and evidence of the early settlement is indefinite. By the 12th century the township had become the religious centre of the vast parish of Halifax, which extended from Brighouse in the east to Heptonstall in the west. Halifax Minster, parts of which date from the 12th century is dedicated to St John the Baptist. The minster's first organist, in 1766, was William Herschel, who discovered the planet Uranus. The coat of arms of Halifax include the chequers from the original coat of arms of the Earls Warenne, who held the town during Norman times.

Halifax was notorious for its gibbet, an early form of guillotine used to execute criminals by decapitation, that was last used in 1650. A replica has been erected on the original site in Gibbet Street. Its original blade is on display at Bankfield Museum. Punishment in Halifax was notoriously harsh, as remembered in the Beggar's Litany by John Taylor (1580–1654), a prayer whose text included "From Hull, from Halifax, from Hell, ‘tis thus, From all these three, Good Lord deliver us.".

The town's 19th-century wealth came from the cotton, wool and carpet industries and like most other Yorkshire towns, it had a large number of weaving mills many of which have been lost or converted to alternate use.

Halifax is known for Mackintosh's chocolate and toffee products including Rolo and Quality Street.

The Halifax Bank was also founded and is still headquartered in Halifax.

Halifax

Halifax General Post Office

Prior to Halifax having a Post Office it had a receiving house in Cheapside in the town centre, this was a small windowed building with no public access. People would call at the window for receiving mail for them; or for the posting of mail. As the town and businesses grew this was deemed too small and a functional Post Office was needed. Halifax 'original post office' (now a hotel) was on (55) Winding Road in the town centre.

By 1819, the Post Office moved to a building opposite the ‘White Lion’ in Silver Street, but by 1822 it had moved again to to 6 Westgate.

By 1850 further expansion in volume of mail rendered the town needing even larger offices. These were obtained in 1851 at George Street (No. 6).

Further growth and more space were again needed by 1863 and premises were aqcuired further down George Street, thought to be Number 3.

Finally the GPO agreed to build a purpose built GPO in the town that would sustain a future for growth this was built around the corner on Commercial Street. This was completed in 1887. The office finally closed in 2016 and re-opened within a WHSmith store at 5 Market Street in the town.

Royal Mail operate the Halifax Delivery & Sorting Office at Gaol Lane across the road from the Winding Road Post Office..

Uniform Penny Postage

In 1840 the Postmistress Tabitha Bagnold when the uniform peny postage was introduced. The Post office was on Windhill Lane (now called Winding Road).

Halifax to Keighley 4 Apr 1840 prepaid, with Pd 1 in red Uniform Penny Postage

backside with Halifax date postmark in blue

1905 Halifax double circle with bars code 8

1899 Halifax double circle with bars code 6

Town Sub-Offices

Bell Hall

Boothtown

Used Telegraph code Halifax F

California

Used Telegraph code Halifax A

Copley

Cote Hill

Dunkirk

Gibbert Street

Haley Hill

Heath

High Road Well

Hopwood Lane

Used Telegraph code Halifax B

Illingworth

King Cross

King Cross Street

Lee Mount

Mount Pellon

New Bank

North Bridge

Used Telegraph code Halifax C

Ovenden

Pellon Lane

Queen's Road

St. Albans Road

St. James's Road

Salterhebble

Now called Park Lane PO

=Scar Bottom

Shaw Syke

Siddal

Thrum Hall

Union Street

Warley

Wheatley

Anonymous

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Halifax (GB)

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