'Fore Street Post Office'

Why the inverted commas round the title of this page? It is because the Post Office moved from its position on the south side of the lower section of Fore Street in the 1960s up the road to its current location close to the Star Lane junction. Brian Jepson's own hand-lettered label is dated 1999 and captions the photograph: 'Fore Street - 40 years ago. Now IE Electric & Post Office'; this dates the view to 1959. Brian would have had a particular interest in this view as it is the one he would have seen from his own front windows of 'The Cor Visser House'. At the time of the photograph Smyth Bros. Builders Merchants had a remarkable number of individual and linked shops in Fore Street - far more than Martin & Newby. Here we see three linked shops including the building with the two dormer windows.

This was once a public house called the Bull & Dog; today it is Fore Street Post Office. See our map of the historic pubs in Fore Street. Interestingly, the invaluable Suffolk CAMRA researchers report: “By 1922 the pub had been converted into a Post Office and remains as a Post Office today. The license surrendered February 1920 according to the Borough Police licensed premises register. The building dates from the 18th century or earlier. We've seen one reference to this building as the Black Lion, though whether this is an older name or a mistake isn't currently known. In 1888 listed at 53 Fore St, St Clements.” This information seems to indicate that there were two post offices in Fore Street, running concurrently for many years. Given its role as a main shopping street, home to many businesses (see Ted King's oral history account), this is quite possible.

Here's the view in 2014 of the truncated building north of the Post Office, cut off by the Star Lane cut-through. The roof with the dormer windows has been extended left over the next-door shop.

The David Kindred set of photographs, linked on our '61 Photos page, includes the monochrome view shown here of the Post Office at its original site sandwiched between two parts of Meux Maltings. The Grimwade Street junction faces these buildings. The P.O. at this location also appears in the Ipswich Society film (linked on the Audio/Film page, with film stills) showing a postman on GPO bicycle arriving outside the Post Office. Another interesting feature of this photograph is the sign in the window: 'C.H. Healey ... Printer, Stationer'; many will remember that the Post Office in its present site was part of Healey's Printers and Stationers in this and the next door shop to the left, which suggests that it remained part of the Healey business after the move.

See also Fore Street maps showing Listed buildings and Public houses.