The Hawker Post Office closed its doors
for the last time on Friday 11 January 2007. The Post Office opened at 60 Elder
Terrace in 1882.
The local telephone exchange became part
of the Post Office in 1923.It was moved to the Telecom telecommunications
building at 70 Elder Terrace in 1983. The telephone exchange became fully
automatic on September 17, 1988.
In 1980 Australia Post introduced a
pictorial postmarker for Wilpena Pound. This was to be used on all mail placed
in the letter receiver at Wilpena.
To celebrate the centenary of the Hawker
Post Office in 1982, a special envelope was produced for postal history
collectors. The envelopes featured a sketch by Chris Goddard (local artist) of
the original Post Office building as it would have appeared in 1882, a 27 cent
Historic Post Office stamp and an impression of a special pictorial postmark
dated August 4, 1982. The envelopes were numbered and were sold with the
proceeds to benefit the Hawker Swimming Pool.
After the deluge in March 1989 the mail
had to be ferried over the flooded Boolcunda Creek, a very unusual occurrence
for this part of the country.
In 1989 more post boxes were installed
giving an indication of the growth of Hawker at that time.
Department of Environment & Natural
Resources (now Department for Environment & Heritage) purchased the Licensed
Post Office September 1992.
Department of Environment & Natural
Resources moved its regional office from Hawker District Council Chambers,
Cradock Road to Hawker Post Office, Elder Terrace in 1992.
At that time there were nine employed in
various positions from regional manager to resource protection, visitor service,
three rangers, and three clerks. Some of the duties of the clerks were to
provide a postal service and customer liaison. This arrangement remained until
March 2005 when the Department of Environment and Heritage (formerly NPWS)
relocated to the Wilpena Homestead site sold. The Australia Post Licence was
sold to the Davnar Trading Trust. The post office services and boxes were
relocated to the Hawker General Store where postal business commenced on 14
January 2008.
