Try the following: using System; using System.IO; class Test { static void Main() { FileStream fs = new FileStream(akila.txt FileMode.Open FileAccess.Read); int first = fs.ReadByte(); Console.WriteLine(First character is {0} (char)first); long len = fs.Length; fs.Seek(len/2 SeekOrigin.Begin); int middle = fs.ReadByte(); Console.WriteLine(Middle character is {0} (char)middle); fs.Seek(-1 SeekOrigin.End); int last = fs.ReadByte(); Console.WriteLine(Last character is {0} (char)last); fs.Close(); Console.ReadKey(); } } akila.txt is assumed to be an ASCII text file containing : i'm from coimbatore. The output should be: First character is i Middle character is c Last character is e