Post office · Madras Presidency
VellorePostal Covers & Pre-1854 Postal History
Vellore postal covers and handstruck postal markings of pre-1854 British India, recorded in an open census: 7 Vellore handstamps recorded between 1801 and 1843, Madras Presidency, with 8 Vellore covers traced to them.
- Handstamps
- 7
- Recorded
- 1801–1843
- Rare
- 1
Vellore is in North Arcot District, Madras Presidency, situated 12°55' N and 79°9' E, on the right bank of the Palar River, 87 miles from Madras. Shortly after 1760, Vellore was occupied by an East India Company garrison, and was unusuccessfully attacked by Haidar Ali in 1780. A mutiny occurred in 1806, when a large number of European soldiers were massacred by the sepoys. The Mysore princes were attributed to have caused the mutiny, and were thereafter removed to Bengal.
Vellore has 7 pre-1854 hand-struck postal markings dated 1801–1843 recorded in this census. Each figure links to its covers, rarity and provenance.
Brown border = community submission, verified by editors
Vellore handstamp summary
All recorded markings at a glance — click any row for full details and covers.
Vellore— postal history & markings
Vellore's seven handstamps span 1801 to 1843, worked mostly in black. Two of its marks — HG 1 of 1801 and HG 2 of 1815 — are oval in form, and HG 1A of 1813 is known from a single example. An East India Company garrison had occupied the North Arcot town shortly after 1760, and its post traces that station's working life on the Palar. Beyond the oval early strikes and the single-example HG 1A, the record settles into common use — but its 1801 opener makes Vellore one of the earlier offices in the Madras series.
Frequently asked — Vellore postal history
- What are the pre stamp covers of Vellore?
- Pre stamp (pre philatelic) covers of Vellore are folded letters and envelopes that passed through the Vellore post office before India's first adhesive stamp of 1854, so postage was shown entirely by hand-struck postal markings and manuscript rates. Vellore was a post office of the Madras Presidency, British India, and this census records 7 distinct postal markings used there, dated between 1801 and 1843.
- How many handstamps are recorded for Vellore?
- 7 hand-struck postal markings are recorded for Vellore 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 Vellore 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 Vellore 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 Vellore were struck, catalogued and graded for rarity.
Also searched as: Vellore, Vellore HG 1, Vellore handstruck stamps, Vellore pre stamp covers, Vellore postal history.
How to cite
“Vellore, Madras Presidency — pre-1854 handstruck stamps & covers,” Hand Struck Stamps, https://handstruckstampsindia.com/madras/vellore (accessed 24 September 2026).
Updated: 24 Sept 2026
An unrecorded mark from Vellore?
If you hold a cover or strike from Vellore 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.