Post office · Madras Presidency
MountPostal Covers & Pre-1854 Postal History
Mount postal covers and handstruck postal markings of pre-1854 British India, recorded in an open census: 7 Mount handstamps recorded between 1820 and 1856, Madras Presidency, with 19 Mount covers traced to them.
- Handstamps
- 7
- Recorded
- 1820–1856
- Rare
- 1
St Thomas's Mount is a town and cantonment in the Saidapet taluk of Chingleput District, Madras Presidency, situated 13° N and 80°12' E, 8 miles south of Madras. Figured in British history long before it was made a cantonment. In 1759, the battle of the Mount was fought between Lally and Col. Calliaud in the Franco-British wars in Southern India. Became the headquarters for the Madras Artillery in 1774.
Mount has 7 pre-1854 hand-struck postal markings dated 1820–1856 recorded in this census. Each figure links to its covers, rarity and provenance.
Mount handstamp summary
All recorded markings at a glance — click any row for full details and covers.
Mount— postal history & markings
St Thomas's Mount, a cantonment eight miles south of Madras, leaves seven handstamps from 1820 to 1856. Its opening mark, HG 1 of 1820, is known from a single example, and HG 2 is scarce, after which the office settled into common use in black and red. The hill had figured in south Indian history long before it became a cantonment, and its post served the garrison stationed there. Beyond the single-example HG 1, the record is a steady run of town marks — but that scarce opener anchors the office firmly in the first years of organised posting around the presidency capital.
Frequently asked — Mount postal history
- What are the pre stamp covers of Mount?
- Pre stamp (pre philatelic) covers of Mount are folded letters and envelopes that passed through the Mount post office before India's first adhesive stamp of 1854, so postage was shown entirely by hand-struck postal markings and manuscript rates. Mount was a post office of the Madras Presidency, British India, and this census records 7 distinct postal markings used there, dated between 1820 and 1856.
- How many handstamps are recorded for Mount?
- 7 hand-struck postal markings are recorded for Mount in this census, of which 1 is graded rare or better. Each mark carries its Hammond Giles catalogue figure number, colour, date range, evidence-based rarity grade, and links to every surviving cover recorded with it.
- How do I identify a Mount postmark or cover?
- Compare your cover against the reference impressions on this page — each figure shows the mark's design, ink colour and recorded date range. If your Mount cover bears a mark that matches a figure, open that figure's page to see every recorded example with provenance. If it matches none, it may be unrecorded: submit photographs through the form on this page and the editors will review it for inclusion in the census.
For background on the material itself, see the guides to the handstruck stamps of India, the pre covers of India and the pre stamp covers of India, which explain how marks like those recorded at Mount were struck, catalogued and graded for rarity.
Also searched as: Mount, Mount HG 1, Mount handstruck stamps, Mount pre stamp covers, Mount postal history.
How to cite
“Mount, Madras Presidency — pre-1854 handstruck stamps & covers,” Hand Struck Stamps, https://handstruckstampsindia.com/madras/mount (accessed 24 September 2026).
Updated: 24 Sept 2026
An unrecorded mark from Mount?
If you hold a cover or strike from Mount that does not match any figure above, submit it below. Approved additions appear here as new entries in the census — every submission is reviewed first.
Same presidency
Other post offices in the Madras Presidency
Explore the pre-1854 postal history of other Madras Presidency post offices — each page lists its recorded handstruck markings, dates and surviving covers.