London SW (GB)

1883 Registered S.W.D.O.

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London's purpose-built South Western District Head Office at Howick Place. It now serves as the Royal Mail SW District delivery and sorting Office.

The SW (South Western and Battersea) postcode area, also known as the London SW postcode area, is a group of postcode districts covering part of southwest London, England. When the London Districts were created in 1844 the South Western District Office (SWDO) opened as a temporary office at Little Charlotte Street in Buckingham Gate. Later moving to Howick Place. The SW District covers an area from Fitzrovia across the Thames into Battersea. It includes special offices within the House of Commons and the Royal Houshold.

The South Western District Postcode Areas. N.B. The District numbers are not relative to the SW numbers found on the early postmarks, which represented numbered cancellers doing different tasks at the SWDO.

South Western District Office

SW 17 issued 1869

SW 15

1883 Registered S.W.D.O.

1883 Pimlico

London SW in 1905

London SW 21 on Plate 50 Die II

Rare usage on Registered SW 2 London express cover cancelled SW 1

Cover Examples

2d registered uprated to 3d and much redirected - click the envelope for more details.	3d Foreign Bill fiscal stamp used as postage sent from London to Streatham.	2d registered uprated to 3d with a 1d Lilac. Registered at Lower Teddington, Twickenham office. Then routed via the main Teddington office to the London Chief Office where it received the Puple London Hooded Registered cancel.
Lower Teddington Registered cover reverse showing the London Chief Office 44 despatch registered handstamp before sending on to Southend on Sea	300px International Reply Coupon issued at Harrods Department store at Brompton Rd SW

1883 Pimlico, London S.W. to Bournemouth (front) Registered cancel S.W.D.O. 1883 Pimlico, London S.W. to Bournemouth (back)

1896 Bournemouth to London S.W. (front) 1896 Bournemouth to London S.W. (back)

1901 London S.W. 44 to Wianno, Massachusetts	1901 London S.W.to Vestervik, Sweden	1967 London S.W.I. to Bern, Switzerland
1893 2½d jubilee cover with SW 55 duplex cancel to Bone Algeria	1893 2½d jubilee cover Bone Constatine Algeria receiver on reverse

Slogan Postmarks

1940 Post Early In The Day

Sub Offices

House of Commons

The House of Commons of England evolved in the 13th and 14th centuries. It eventually became the House of Commons of Great Britain after the political union with Scotland in 1707, and assumed the title of "House of Commons of Great Britain and Ireland" after the political union with Ireland at the start of the 19th century. The "United Kingdom" referred to was the United Kingdom of Great Britain and =Ireland from 1800, and became the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland after the independence of the Irish Free State in 1922. Accordingly, the House of Commons assumed its current title.
It has its own post office that serves the politicians and Lords.

HOUSE OF COMMONS S.W. 1 on 3d Wilding 1963

Wandsworth Common

This office was situated at No 5 Bellevue Road Wandsworth Common

WANDSWORTH COMMON BELLEVUE Rd No 5 SW 2nd step rate Registered postal stationery to Berlin Germany

Battersea

See also: Battersea (GB)

Battersea SW11 Roller cancel 1966

Tooting

Tooting T.P. (2 Penny Post) charged at 3d rate of 1823

London Chief Office backstamp receiver mark in red 1823

Earls Court

1892 REGISTERED EARLS COURT cover to Tongres Belgium, posted out of course (POOC) into a letterbox instead of handing in. 2d reg + 4d rated underpaid by ½d but not taxed. If it had of been an inland cover it would have been taxed 1d for the underpayment plus 1d for the posting out of course.

reverse 1892 REGISTERED EARLS COURT cover to Tongres Belgium

1905 EARLS COURT Double circle and bars

Gloucester Rd

Gloucester Rd, Near Hereford Square.

9d cancelled by a SON cancellation of Glouceter Rd/Nr Hereford Sq SW

Knightsbridge

Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End.
Knightsbridge was historically known in Saxon and Old English as Cnihtebricge (c. 1050); Knichtebrig (1235); Cnichtebrugge (13th century); and Knyghtesbrugg 1364, that is "bridge of the young men or retainers," from Old English cniht and brycg.
From 1885 to 1887, as a result of the opening of trade between Britain and the Far East, Humphreys' Hall in Knightsbridge hosted an exhibition of Japanese culture in a setting built to resemble a traditional Japanese village. The exhibition was very popular, with over 250,000 visitors during its early months

Knightsbridge was a Branch Office of the SW London District.

1876Telegraph 5/- used at Knightsbridge B.O. SW, wrong date slug used so manuscript cancelled to correct date.

East Hill

Location of East Hill Post Office, Wandsworth c.1899

East Hill runs from Wandsworth High Street through to Clapham Junction & Town, It is the A3036 The Post Office was sited at the East end of East Hill.

Registered cover posted at East Hill, Wandswort office to Germany.

Fulham

Fulham SW 1900 on 1d Lilac,Double circle with Bars No. 2 cancel

167 Vauxhall Bridge Road

Branch Office situated at 167 Vauxhall Bridge Road still operating. Another smaller office was at #10 Vauxhall Bridge Road.

Vauxhall Bridge Road 167 SW 1

WWII 1943 cover sent from Secunderabad with Advance Base Post Office No.13 cancellation “BY SAFE HAND OF PILOT” to Ministry of War Transport, London. Redirected at the Branch office Vauxhall Bridge Road 167 cancel

185 Fulham Palace Road, Fulham

Closed 2018/2019

185 Fulham Palace Road Post Office Counter handstamp 2001. Value declared rate to France.

Jermyn Street

Office situated at No. 132 Jermyn Street. still operating. smaller office was at No. 30 Jermyn Street.

6d rated letter to Lucknow, India posted at 132 Jermyn Street

Jermyn St 132 cancel on reverse. 2 Indistinct Calcutta GPO transit marks.

West Brompton Station Office

West Brompton S.O. S.W. 1905 on KEdVII pair of ½d greens

West Brompton is a London Underground, London Overground and National Rail station on Old Brompton Road in West Brompton, located in west London, and is on the District line and West London Line (WLL). It is immediately south of the demolished Earls Court Exhibition Centre and west of Brompton Cemetery in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.

The West London Extension Joint Railway (WLEJR) was opened in the early 1860s. It joined the southern end of the West London Joint Railway at Kensington (Olympia) station with Clapham Junction station and ran through West Brompton although a station was not opened until 1866.

The original station was designed by the chief engineer of the Metropolitan and District Railway, Sir John Fowler and thus has local railway associations that go back to 1838.