Buzz
“Through snow, rain, scorching heat, and the darkest nights, these messengers never cease their mission to deliver what’s entrusted to them.”
Does this ring a bell? Many assume it’s the official motto of the United States Postal Service, but in reality, the USPS has no formal motto. This phrase, derived from Herodotus’s *The Persian Wars* (Book 8) and etched on the General Post Office in New York City, perfectly encapsulates the relentless dedication of postal workers throughout history and today.
10. The Legendary Pony Express
In 1860, William H. Russell was confident that his Central Overland California and Pike’s Peak Express Company could outperform stagecoach wagons, which took 24 days to travel from Missouri to California. The company established way stations every 10-15 miles and released the following advertisement:
Seeking: Young, lean, tough individuals under 18. Must be skilled riders, ready to face danger daily. Orphans given preference. Pay: $25.00 per week.
Johnny Fry and Sam Hamilton were the first to join, pledging an oath to avoid swearing, fighting, mistreating animals, or lying. The Pony Express launched with high hopes. “No obstacle or peril should slow him down or alter his path, as the world eagerly awaits the news he delivers… Godspeed to the pony and the boy!” (The Western Journal of Commerce: Kansas City). Russell’s forecast was correct: the inaugural run took just 10 days—less than half the stagecoach time. Riders traveled 75-100 miles daily, pausing only briefly at way stations to switch horses.
Using the Pony Express was costly: $5.00 for a half-ounce letter, compared to the standard U.S. postage rate of 10¢. However, for urgent deliveries, it was unmatched. In 1861, President Lincoln’s inaugural address set a record for the fastest transcontinental delivery, traveling from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, in 7 days and 17 hours. That same year, the transcontinental telegraph was completed, leading to the Pony Express’s closure on October 26, 1861, after only eighteen months of service.
9. Missile Mail
Mail has been transported by various means, including horses, boats, sleds, snowshoes, skis, trucks, motorcycles, cars, mules, pole boats, airplanes, hovercraft, dog sleds, parachutes, and snowmobiles. However, none are as unconventional as missile mail. In 1936, two rockets carried mail approximately 2000 feet across a frozen lake from Greenwood Lake, New York, to Hewitt, New Jersey. The rockets crash-landed and slid across the ice, prompting the Hewitt postmaster to retrieve the mail bags and complete the delivery. Later, Postmaster General Arthur Summerfield made another attempt. On June 8, 1959, he proclaimed, “Before humans land on the moon, mail will be delivered within hours from New York to California, England, India, or Australia using guided missiles.”
The submarine USS Barbero launched a guided missile carrying 3000 letters toward the naval air station in Mayport, Florida. Traveling at 600 mph, the missile covered 100 miles in just 22 minutes. Despite this feat, the high costs made missile mail impractical as a regular delivery method.
8. Mule Train
In Supai, Arizona, a sign at the local café humorously states, “No fries until the mail arrives.” The town consumes more mail than it reads. Located at the base of the Grand Canyon’s south rim and home to 525 Havasupai Native Americans, Supai is the last U.S. destination to receive mail via mule train. Helicopters and air drops are impractical here, so the mail is delivered by mules five days a week, with each mule carrying up to 200 pounds of supplies.
7. Million Dollar Delivery
When New York jeweler Harry Winston decided to donate the legendary Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian Institution, he opted for first-class mail. “It’s the safest way to send gems,” Winston reportedly said. The delivery from New York City to Washington, D.C., cost $2.44 in postage and an extra $142.85 for a million-dollar insurance policy.
Letter carrier James Todd collected the diamond from the City Post Office and drove to the Natural History building, where he handed it to the curator. Later, Todd admitted to the Washington Post that he felt “a bit nervous,” not because of the diamond’s immense value (45.52 carats), but because he wasn’t accustomed to such attention in his line of work.
6. Pet Post
In December 1954, the Orlando, Florida, postmaster received a peculiar letter:
Dear Sir: I am sending my chameleon to you because the cold weather in Fostoria, Ohio, is too harsh for him. Please release him in a suitable environment. Sincerely, David __________ P.S. Could you confirm his safe arrival? I’m deeply concerned about his well-being.
On December 7, 1954, David received this reply:
Dear David, Your chameleon arrived safely yesterday and was promptly released on the post office grounds. Wishing you a joyful Christmas! Sincerely, L.A. Bryant, Jr. Postmaster
5. Child Post
In 1914, four-year-old May Pierstorff from Grangeville, Idaho, was sent to visit her grandmother in Lewiston via Parcel Post, as it was cheaper than a train ticket. Weighing 48.5 pounds, she met the requirement of being under 50 pounds. At the time, mailing chickens was legal, so her parents paid the chicken rate of fifty-three cents, attaching the postage to her coat. May traveled in the baggage car under the postal clerk’s supervision. Upon arrival, the Lewiston postmaster personally delivered her to her grandmother. By 1920, mailing humans was outlawed, though not before a frustrated mother once mailed her baby to her estranged husband.
4. Pneumatic Tubes
The pneumatic tube systems offered a unique form of tunnel vision. Beneath New York City, workers still occasionally stumble upon remnants of this once-thriving underground mail network. Powered by rotary blowers and air compressors, these tubes could transport mail at speeds of up to 100 mph, unaffected by snow or traffic above. At its peak, 136 operators, known as rocketeers, managed the system, dispatching a tube every 12 seconds. By the 1950s, 55% of New York City’s mail traveled through these tubes.
However, the system had its drawbacks. Each container could only hold five pounds and was limited to one type of mail. The process was costly, partly due to the need for double sorting. While the tubes saved time in transit, this advantage was offset by the time spent sorting and re-sorting. The system was halted from 1919 to 1922, briefly revived in New York and Boston, and ultimately shut down in 1953.
3. Posted To Freedom
Henry “Box” Brown, an enslaved man who had endured the heartbreak of his wife and children being sold away, mailed himself to freedom on March 29, 1849. With assistance from a storekeeper in Louisa County, Virginia, Brown was packed into a crate measuring 3’x 2’x 2.6’, marked “This Side Up With Care,” and shipped to the Philadelphia home of abolitionist James Miller McKim.
Standing 5’8” and weighing 200 pounds, Brown folded himself into the box with only a small water container, enduring the journey for 27 hours. The crate was transported via wagon, train baggage car, steamboat, ferry, and finally another wagon to McKim’s residence. When no sound came from the box, McKim asked, “Is all right within?” Brown replied, “All right.” Upon opening the crate, Brown stood briefly before collapsing.
Brown’s daring escape sparked public outrage, leading to the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, which criminalized aiding runaway slaves. Following the law’s enactment, Brown relocated to England, where he stayed until 1875.
2. First Airmail
The first airmail flight in history occurred in 1859 aboard the hot air balloon Jupiter. On August 17, amid 90-degree heat, aeronaut John Wise was entrusted with 123 letters in Lafayette, Indiana, destined for New York City. The balloon climbed to 14,000 feet to catch a breeze, but the wind carried it south instead. After traveling just 30 miles in five hours, Wise landed in Crawfordsville, Indiana, humorously dubbing the journey a “trans-county-nental” flight. The mail was handed to a postal agent, who forwarded it to New York by train.
1. Rural Free Delivery
Rural Free Delivery (RFD) began when Postmaster General John Wanamaker proposed that one person deliver mail to rural homes instead of fifty people traveling to town for their mail. Previously, postmasters hired boys for deliveries, teachers sent mail home with students, and post offices opened briefly after Sunday church services. However, these methods were inefficient.
The challenge of rural mail delivery was the lack of standardized mailboxes. Roadsides soon became cluttered with makeshift containers like orange crates, lard cans, and feed boxes. By 1901, Congress intervened, mandating that rural mailboxes meet specific standards: a uniform size, a signal flag to indicate mail presence, and proper placement for carrier convenience. Basic mailboxes cost fifty cents, while locked versions were pricier. Some customers refused to purchase mailboxes, leading to disputes with the post office over undelivered mail.
The annual distribution of extensive catalogs by Sears, Roebuck and Montgomery Ward unlocked a lucrative vein in the retail sector. This innovation necessitated an adjustment in mailbox dimensions, leading to the congressional endorsement of larger mailboxes in the 1920s, which remain standard to this day.
