See Chinatown’s new Green Plaque – and stop for sushi at 39 Gerrard Street

Last month, Westminster Council and the Lord Mayor of Westminster unveiled a Green Plaque on the site of the first Westminster Penny Post office (now Ikkyusan) at 39 Gerrard Street. Green Plaques commemorate places of special historical interest and this building certainly has history.

A forerunner of today’s Post Office, the Westminster Penny Post Office was set up here in 1794 and allowed the citizens of Westminster to send mail to each other at the fixed price of one penny per package. By the early 19th Century, many towns and cities had their own version; mail was stamped with ‘PP’ or ‘Py Post’ as well as the town’s name.

The Gerrard Street office was where all the letters collected from across the city were sorted. The office operated until 1834 – later becoming the Two-Penny Post Office when charges went up – and by the time it closed, it was the base for 52 postmen who handled 250,000 items of post every week.

“In an age of immediate, instantaneous global communications,” said Cllr Robert Davis DL, (Cabinet Member for planning and Chief Whip) in his unveiling speech, “it’s easy to forget how the process started. The Penny Post in Westminster occupies a unique place in the development of communications as a tool available to a mass audience. It is absolutely right that we should mark this vital part of Westminster’s economic and social history.”

The closure of the Penny Post Office wasn’t the end of 39 Gerrard Street’s illustrious history, however; 125 years later, the building was the first site of legendary Soho jazz club Ronnie Scott’s. Today it’s home to Ikkyusan, a thriving restaurant famous for its sushi and dim sum.

Distinctive to Westminster, Green Plaques were introduced in 1991 to commemorate people and places of note within this historic London borough. The plaque is a first for Chinatown – a traditionally vibrant area with a history spanning four centuries.

Click here to find out more about Chinatown’s history.

To find out more, please contact Ed Fleming or Chris Pilbeam on 0870 444 4568 or at Chinatown@fourcommunications.com.