Mauritius postal history: a personal selection
First Flights "Raid Samat"
"Roland Garros"		 Post Offices &
Postmarks		 Perfin & Meter
cancellations		 Royal Visit
1901

Contact

 Bibliography
Map of Post Offices 2007

Map of Mauritius showing location of Post Offices(2007) click on image for larger version, Copyright Mauritius Philatelic Society

At times examples cancellations of each post office have been produced offically, I have examples from 1949 and 1953, and privately person have produced sets of envelopes with stamps cancelled from each post office. From the 1950's comonly seen are small envelopes addressed to A.L.A. BONBERNARD P.O. Box 50 Port Louis, and less so those addressed to “Mr R. Peromblon, c/o B.Baillache & Co Ltd. Port Louis. From 1985 addressed to Colin Hinchliffe, and stamped “PRINTED PAPERS”. I have from 2004 a set 84 of unaddressed empty sealed airmail letters postmarked twice, once on the stamp (front) and again on the reverse. Then from 2005, a set of opened manila envelopes, addressed to “Mr Ismail Peermamode 15, Madras Street Port Louis.” (handwritten)

As well as the listings for each individual post office below, you can also download here a combined document (95MB) for all 184 post offices, or the official examples from 1949 and from 1952

For additional information and earlier postmarks click on the entry for a particular post office

Thanks for those who have allowed me to reproduce images, please see Credits list for details and copyright infomation on the photographs, and references. It is indended to expand this list to include post offices no longer open as time permits and examples and photographs become available.

 Official Paid items  and Forged postmarks

Pick a letter to jump to a particular Post Office in Mauritius or scroll down,
A    B    C    D    E    F    G    H    I    J    K    L    M    N    O    P    Q    R    S    T    U    V    W    X    Y    Z   

Post Offices in Agalega or Rodrigues

Unnamed post offices, can you help?

Post Offices (some now closed) from Mauritius, click on entry

Albion Post Office Argy Post Office Baie du Cap Post Office Bambous Post Office Beau Bassin Post Office Bel Air Post Office Belle Rose Post Office Belle Vue Maurel Post Office Black River Post Office Bois Cheri Post Office Bon Accueil Post Office Boulevard Pitot Post Office Brisee Verdiere Post Office Britannia Post Office Calebasses Post Office Camp de Masque Post Office Camp de Masque Pave Post Office Camp Diable Post Office Cap Malheureux Post Office Cascade Road Halt Post Office Case Noyale Post Office Cassis Post Office Central Flacq Post Office Central Telegraph Office Post Office Chamarel Post Office Chemin Grenier Post Office Cité de Rosnay Post Office Clarens Post Office Cluny Post Office Coromandel Post Office Creve Coeur Postal Agency Curepipe Post Office Curepipe Road Post Office Dagotiere Post Office D'Epinay Post Office Eau Coulee Post Office Ebene Post Office Flacq Post Office Flic en Flac Post Office Floreal Post Office Fond du Sac Post Office Forest Side Post Office Fressanges Post Office Goodlands Post Office GPO (new) Grand Bay Post Office Grand Bois Post Office Grand Gaube Post Office Grand River S.E. Post Office Grand Savanne Post Office Grand Sable Post Office Henrietta Post Office La Caverne Post Office La Rosa Post Office La Flora Post Office La Louise Post Office Lalmatie Post Office Laventure Post Office L'Etoile Post Office L'Escalier Post Office Mahebourg Post Office Mapou Post Office Mare D'Albert Post Office Mesnil Post Office Midlands Post Office Mobile Post Offfice Moka Post Office Monneron Hill Post Office Montagne Blanche Post Office Montagne Longue Post Office Morne Brabant Post Office New Grove Post Office Notre Dame Post Office Nouvelle France Post Office Old Grand Port Post Office Olivia Post Office Pailles Post Office Palma Post Office Pamplemousses Post Office Parcel Post Office Petit Raffray Post Office Petite Rivčre Port Post Office Phoenix Post Office Piton Post Office Plaine des Papayes Post Office Plaine Magnien Post Office Plaisance Airport Post Office Pointeaux Sables Post Office Port Louis Post Office Port Louis Centre Post Office Port Louis E.S. Post Office Port Louis G.P.O Port Louis Railway Post Office Port Louis W.S. Post Office Postal Museum Poudre D'or Post Office Poudre d'Or Village Post Office Quatre Bornes Post Office Quatre Cocos Post Office Quartier Militaire Post Office Reduit Post Office Riche Terre Post Office Riviere des Anguilles Post Office RiviereDragon Post Office Riviere du Poste Post Office Riviere du Rempart Post Office Riviere Seche Post Office Roche Bois Postal Agency Rose Belle Post Office Rose Hill Post Office Sainte Croix Post Office Saint Paul Post Office Sebastopol Post Office Solferino Post Office Souillac Post Office SSR International Airport Post Office Saint Hubert Post Office St Julien Post Office St Julien D'Hotman Post Office Saint Pierre Post Office Stanley Post Office Surinam Post Office Tamarin Post Office Terre Rouge Post Office Tombeau Bay Post Office Triolet Bay Post Office Trois Boutiques Post Office Trou aux Biches Post Office Trou D'eau Douce Bay Post Office Union Flacq Post Office Union Vale Post Office Vacoas Post Office Vallee des Pretres Post Office Vallee Pitot Post Office Verdun Post Office Villebague Post Office Waterfront Post Office (was G.P.O)

Post Office in Agalega

Agalega Post Office

Post Offices in Rodrigues

Grande Montagne Post Office La Ferme Post Office Mont Lubin Post Office Port Mathurin Post Office Riviere Cocos Post Office

Various

Official Paid ForgedPostmarks
CREDITS
The following images of Post Offices are copyright, Patrick Kwan, and used with permission.
Albion(2011), Baie du cap(2002), Flic en flac(2003), Grand Montagne(2004), Midlands(2003), Mobile Post Office(2000), Old Grand Port(2003), Plaine des Papayes(2003), Reduit(2006), SSR Airport(2003), Black River(2007), Agalega (2002), Grand Montagne(2004), la ferme(2004 & 2006), Mont Lubin(2004), Port Mathurin(2006), Riviere Coco(2004), Troisboutiques, Petite Riviere, Moka, Mesnil(2005), Lescalier 1, Camp de Masque, Beau Bassin 3, Black River, New Grove, Souillac, St Hubert, new G.P.O (Dumas Street), Grand Bay(2004), Mapou(1994), Riviere du Poste(2007) Riviere des Anguilles.
Beau Bassin is copyright Helen Morgan, reproduced with permission.
Cap Malheureux Post Office is copyright the Italian Philatelic journalist fabioV, reproduced with permission, he has also provided postmarks of Mont Lubin and Port Mathurin 3 from Rodrigues.
The photograph of the GPO Port Louis(2006) is from Wikimedia Commons.
The photograph of Rivičre du Rempart(2001) is copyright flickr user "Emma xxxx", reproduced with permission.
The photographs (2011) of Riviere Cocos, Mahebourg and Bois Cheri copyright Stephen Spark, reproduced with permission.
The photograph (2011) of Britannia copyright Mr. Nirpal JHURRY, reproduced with permission.
The photographs (2004)(1974) of Vacoas are copyright Robert H Chase, reproduced with permission.
Thanks go to the following who have supplied example postmarks: Patrick Kwan, Martin Lipczer. The Forged Quatre Bornes is reproduced with permission from the American Philatelic Society
NOTES ON REFERENCES QUOTED
There are three main sources of information I have used, listed in order of general availability to the collector on the open market.
  1. The Postal History of Mauritius by Edward B. Proud. Although published in 2001 limits itself to pre-independence 1968. Unless otherwise indicated all the post office opening and closing dates have been taken from this book. Other references are indicated by a (E.B.Proud) following.
  2. Mauritius Postal History and Stamps by Peter Ibbotson, Published in 1991, together with Revisions and Additions published in 1995. References from this have a (Ibbotson) following.
  3. IO the Bulletin of the Indian Ocean Study Circle, published from 1970. I personally have only up to volume 50, plus a few odd later issues. Reference with IOSC followed by the volume and page number, e.g. (IOSC v5 p14).
  4. Personal communications I am greatfull for all of these, and they are acknowledged as needed.