The postal service was an important service in early colonial Sydney. Letters were the only connection back to Britain for convicts, settlers, and government officials.

Isaac Nicholls was appointed as Sydney's first Postmaster in 1809, and added structure and regulation to a situation where ships were mobbed by people looking for (or stealing) mail. 

Gradually the postal service spread to other parts of Sydney, including Waverley where the first post office was established in 1858.