[1] The first official postal service in Australia was established in April 1809, when Sydney merchant Isaac Nichols was appointed as the first Postmaster in the Colony of New South Wales.

[1] The appointment of James Barnet as Acting Colonial Architect in 1862 coincided with a considerable increase in funding to the public works program.

The post offices constructed during this period were designed in a variety of architectural styles, as Barnet argued that the local parliamentary representatives always preferred "different patterns".

[1] Europeans first crossed the Peel River Valley and Tamworth district in 1818, when John Oxley explored the area during his second expedition north from Bathurst.

Surveyor John Gorman submitted his plan for a Tamworth Reserve on 31 July 1849, after which Sir Thomas Mitchell, Roderick's father, began laying out the design for the town and named its original streets.

Despite objections from the Postmaster as to the positioning of the new extension, close to a stable, water closets and cowyard, the room was completed in October 1881.

Still deemed too small, two further land purchases in late 1883 were made to accommodate the planned building, which included a colonnade to both Peel and Fitzroy Streets.

The Hon J. Norton, Postmaster General, laid the foundation stone on 23 January 1886 and the new building was occupied by the Post Office on 31 May 1886.

[1] The Tamworth Post Office is a two-storey Victorian Italianate building constructed in ashlar pattern rendered brickwork, with a four-storey corner clock tower.

[1] The tower is capped by a cast concrete cupola with iron finial at the apex, housing the striking hour bell, and it retains four clock faces to the level below.

To the ground floor original section of the building fronting Peel Street, there are two pairs of French doors at the centre, with fanlight and arched window over each and paired, side hung windows either side with arched fanlights over, of matching proportions to the doors.

There are false doors and smaller windows to the extension at the western end addition of the Fitzroy Street facade, all located at regular intervals between arched bays.

[1] The hard street edges of Tamworth's Civic Precinct have been softened with landscaping including large palm trees, one located at the front corner of the Post Office, flower beds, cast iron bollards, pedestrian islands and crossings, and sympathetic "heritage" street lighting.

The exterior is in very good condition and is intact to its original form excepting the sympathetic addition to the west, fronting Fitzroy Street.

Tamworth Post Office still retains the features which make it culturally significant, including the prominent clock tower, arcaded loggia, stucco wall finish and the cast-iron spiral staircase.

[1] Extensions were undertaken in 1966 to the Fitzroy Street facade to accommodate a telephone exchange and additional mail box facilities.

[1] Extensive internal modifications have occurred over time, including the relocation of the Post Office to the rear addition ground floor and the creation of the isolated commercial premises at the front of the building, possibly during the 1986 alterations.

It is intact, appears in excellent condition and remains manually operated, with a striking hour bell located on the level above.

[1] As at 3 August 2000, Tamworth Post Office is significant at a State level for its historical associations, aesthetic qualities and social meaning.

[1] Tamworth Post Office is also associated with the early development of the town, as it is linked with the original postal services established in 1840.

[1] Tamworth Post Office was listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 22 December 2000 having satisfied the following criteria.

Tamworth Post Office is associated with the early development of the city, as it is linked with the original postal services established in 1840.

[1] Tamworth Post Office was designed by Colonial Architect James Barnet, a key practitioner of the Victorian Italianate style of architecture.

[1] The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales.

[1] The scale, architectural style and location of the building, along with the prominent corner clock tower, also make it a focal point defining the centre of the civic precinct of Tamworth, endowing it with landmark qualities.

[1] The 1966 sympathetic addition to the Fitzroy Street facade adds to the overall scale and style of the building, and is considered to contribute to the aesthetic significance of Tamworth Post Office.

Tamworth Post Office is a prominent civic building and a local landmark, and has been the centre of communications for the town for over a century.

It is intact, appears in excellent condition and remains manually operated, with a striking hour bell located on the level above.

This feature is considered to have technical significance, with the potential to yield information about the original design of clocks for public buildings in the late nineteenth century.

The original clock mechanism, still in working order, is also considered to be a rare aspect of Tamworth Post Office.