Ophir Post Office

Ophir Post Office- Overview

Ophir Post Office, located in Central Otago, has been operational for the past 120 years and so. It has been delivering post as per the needs of the region since 1886- when it first came into being as the postal agency. In October of 1886, this post office was built using schist masonry with plaster quoins and window dressings by the stonemason named Edward Booth.

Ophir Post Office’s Interesting Facts

-In 1976 the Post Office was included under the Heritage New Zealand list and though it has been restored, it still operates each weekday for three hours in the morning.

-The best part is that its embraces the same interior from the time of its construction all from the counter to the sorting bench to the pigeonholes and the instrument table.

-Other interesting fact is that it keeps records of all the extreme weather observations, that have been observed over the years, in a local diary, and also has a jail house which is located at the far end of its pretty garden.

A Bit About the Historic Town of Ophir

Note that, the town of Ophir which was originally established in the 1860s was previously known as Blacks No 1 or Blackton, and unlike the present times, then it was chiefly a gold mining town- and that too a thriving one. In 1875 the name was changed to Ophir, after a Biblical place where King Solomon is said to have obtained gold for the temple in Jerusalem. By 1875, the town was equipped with its own stores, banks, hospital, churches, police station, hotels and school; however, as already stated above, the post office appeared on the scene in 1886.

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