Posting the nation: Australia’s apprenticeship in letter writing

• Published in: History Australia Vol. 21; no. 4; pp. 1 - 19
• Main Author: Lyons, Martyn
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Clayton Taylor & Francis Ltd 01.12.2024
• Subjects: 19th century; Apprenticeship; Apprenticeships; Institution building; Nation building; Postal service; Public sphere; Rhythm; Australia

A national postal service is an essential nation-building institution; it integrates distant regions into a national community and fosters the extension of the public sphere. But in the first decades of colonial Australia, the material conditions of sending letters were precarious and uncertain, the...