You've Got Mail: A History of the Mailbox with Giveaway!

Blogger: Amber Schamel

There are a lot of things in our everyday life that we don't even think about, but without them our civilization would be drastically different. One of these is the mailbox. I'd never paid much attention to them, but one day as we were driving along and I was staring out the window trying not to get car sick as we wove in and out of the Missouri Ozarks, my brow quirked. How did mailboxes come about? They're all the same shape and very uniform in most cases. When did that happen?

Before the 1850's, mailboxes didn't exist at all. When you had to go to the post office to purchase postage anyway, there was no need for a mail receptacle anywhere else. But with the invention of the postage stamp, came a need for such a device.

Around 1863, folks in the United States began enjoying Free City Delivery. Letters and mail would be delivered to each doorstep, free of charge. During this time period, you would have the letter carrier knock on your door and wait for you to answer. He'd then hand you your mail with a smile, say a few neighborly words, and be on his way. This worked for quite a while, but eventually the business side of letter delivery won out. Around 1916, efficiency experts estimated that a mailman lost about 1.5 hours every day waiting for patrons to open their doors and receive their mail. That's when the Post Office Department issued an order that every household or business had to have a mailbox or slot to receive mail.

The first form of mailboxes were attached to an outer wall, and this developed as early as the 1880's. But often, doorsteps are far away from the street, and it takes time for a mail carrier to walk back and forth from his vehicle. To reduce the time required, a proposition was made to attach the mail receptacle to fence posts, lamp posts, etc. While this idea was initially rejected in the city, it did catch on in rural areas. This allowed a postman to deliver mail to several farms in a more efficient manner using a horse drawn wagon, or eventually, a motor vehicle. But it wasn't until 1923 that the Post Office Departement mandated a curbside mail reciprocal for every household and business.

US Rural Free Mail Delivery to curbside mailbox, circa 1905

Where did the unique shape come from?

Did you know the mailbox shape actually has a name? It's called the Joroleman Mailbox, named after the Post Office employee that designed it. Joroleman had a degree in mechanical engineering. In 1915, he designed a light gauge, painted steel box of a rectangular shape, but with a domed top which prevented rain and snow from accumulating too heavily, would hopefully decrease deformation of the boxes, and decreased mass production time to boot.  His finished design was durable and inexpensive and became increasingly popular.

Rural Mail Carrier circa 1910

In 1923, the United States Post Office Department (now known as the USPS) gained the authority to regulate mailbox sizes and designs. This is why your mailbox is stamped with either "U.S. Mail" or "Approved by postmaster."

And what about the little red flag? Joroleman had that on his design as well. Originally it was used not just to alert the postman of outgoing mail, but also for the postman to indicate to the patron that he had delivered the mail. A real convenience in nasty weather.

There you have it, a summary of the history of the mailbox. AND since today is the release day of my new book, DAWN OF LIBERTY, I'm going to give you the chance to have a new book delivered to yours! Leave a comment to get your name in the drawing for an autographed paperback copy. (US addresses only.)

Amber Schamel writes riveting stories that bring HIStory to Life. Visit her at www.AmberSchamel.com, or subscribe to her Newsletter.

History of the U.S. Post Office

William Goddard

They say that necessity is the mother of invention. In Colonial America, Patriot printer William Goddard found that the Crown Post, Britain’s colonial mail system, was blocking his Pennsylvania Chronicle newspaper from getting to his subscribers, as well as blocking important news he needed to include in the paper from getting to him. It was here that necessity birthed the ideas for a new postal system not run by Britain.

Benjamin Franklin

In 1774, Goddard partnered with his friend and mentor, Ben Franklin, to propose a Colonial mail system to the Continental Congress. Franklin had served the Crown Post for a total of thirty-seven years, both as Philadelphia’s postmaster and as the joint postmaster general of the colonies. Franklin lobbied for Goddard’s ideas to be heard, and on October 5, 1774, Goddard gave his extensive designs to Congress. However, due to other pressing matters, they didn’t act upon the idea immediately. But Goddard did.

Goddard began his mail service without the congress’s approval. His new system was run and paid for by subscription service. A private committee was elected by the subscribers, and was in charge of appointing postmasters, determining the mail routes, setting postal rates, and hiring post-riders. By the time the Continental Congress met in May of 1775, Goddard’s Continental Post had 30 post offices between Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Williamsburg, Pennsylvania. Each post rider was made to swear that he would keep all mailings under lock and key.

On July 26, 1775, the Continental Congress put their approval on the new postal system. ToGoddard’s chagrin, the congress named Benjamin Franklin as the first Postmaster General. They did, however, grant Goddard the position of Riding Surveyor. Franklin drew up a hand-written pass for Goddard, allowing him to travel at his discretion for the surveyor position. Within his new job, Goddard traveled southward to set up new post offices.

Pass written by Benjamin Franklin for William Goddard

Warnings about the Crown Post were circulated among the colonists. One such warning stated:

Letters are liable to be stopped & opened by ministerial mandates, & their Contents construed into treasonable Conspiracies; and News Papers, those necessary and important vehicles, especially in Times of public Danger, may be rendered of little avail for want of Circulation ...

Because of this, the colonists quickly switched their mailings to the Constitutional Post, and by Christmas Day 1775, the Crown Post was forced out of business.

Franklin stayed on as Postmaster General until November 7, 1776. Since the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4 of that year, Franklin is stated to be the first Postmaster General of the United States. After Franklin’s departure, Goddard hoped for the appointment to the Postmaster’s job, but was again passed over. This time, it went to Franklin’s son-in-law, Richard Bache. At this point, Goddard resigned to pursue other endeavors.

While many credit Franklin as being the creator of the U.S. Postal Service, it truly was Goddard’s invention, born out of the necessity of getting his newspapers into the hands of the colonists, which brought about the postal service as we know it today. Tomorrow marks the 240th anniversary of the service. Why not make an effort to thank your postal worker when he or she comes by.

Jennifer Uhlarik discovered the western genre as a pre-teen, when she swiped the only “horse” book she found on her older brother’s bookshelf. A new love was born. Across the next ten years, she devoured Louis L’Amour westerns and fell in love with the genre. In college at the University of Tampa, she began penning her own story of the Old West. Armed with a B.A. in writing, she has won five writing competitions and finaled in two other competitions. In addition to writing, she has held jobs as a private business owner, a schoolteacher, a marketing director, and her favorite—a full-time homemaker. Jennifer is active in American Christian Fiction Writers and lifetime member of the Florida Writers Association. She lives near Tampa, Florida, with her husband, teenaged son, and four fur children.

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