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Story: Mail and couriers

Mechanised mail sorting, 1980s

Image
Mechanised mail sorting, 1980s

The first fully automated process for postmarking mail was introduced to New Zealand in 1988. This machine allowed a staff of three to process more than 20,000 letters an hour.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library, Dominion Post Collection (PA-Group-00685)

Reference: EP/1988/1497/9

by Ian Mackley

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Tim Shoebridge, Mail and couriers – Mail in the 20th century, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/23059/mechanised-mail-sorting-1980s (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Tim Shoebridge, published 12 April 2010.