The oldest American institution, which seems to defy the elementsโbe it rain, sleet, snow, or the darkest nightโcelebrates a significant milestone on Saturday. This government agency, established long before the United States itself, traces its roots back to 1775 as developed by the Second Continental Congress. Benjamin Franklin became the postmaster general, marking the start of the postal service almost a year prior to the coloniesโ declaration of independence from British rule.
โThe Postal Service was essential in the countryโs creation,โ remarked Stephen Allen Kochersperger, the postal serviceโs historian and one-time local postmaster.
While its current existence faces modern financial challenges, the agencyโs history is deeply intertwined with the nationโs growth, progressing from serving the initial 13 colonies to owning the worldโs largest postal system. It currently reaches nearly 169 million addresses while employing over 635,000 individuals.
At its inception, forming a unified postal system was crucial for the fledgling nationโs founders. They needed an efficient communication network for the Continental Army as well as between the colonies. Benjamin Franklin was chosen to be the first postmaster due to his prior service in the British postal system in North America.
The early postal framework became a unifying force, disseminating ideas of liberty via letters, newspapers, and pamphlets throughout the diverse and fragmented colonies. โThe reading of these materials sparked notions of independence,โ Kochersperger noted.
Upon ratifying the U.S. Constitution, Congress gained the authority to set up post offices and the first mail routes, initially relied on horse-riders and later enhanced for stagecoaches. These routes evolved into highways, some of which are still operational today.
Initially, postal routes spanned north to south along the East Coast but gradually expanded westward. Historians acknowledge this facilitated settler movement towards Native lands, leading to the displacement of tribes.
As westward migrations surged, shipping mail from New York to Central America onwards to California became standard, averaging a two-to-three-month delivery timeframe. To speed up the process, the Pony Express emerged. Operating on a relay system of horseback riders, the mail traversed from California to Missouri, reaching the farthest westward railway stopโa journey that lasted 10 days.
Despite its legendary status, the Pony Express operated merely for 18 months until October 26, 1861, as the Civil War erupted, and telegraph lines rendered it obsolete, according to Daniel Piazza, chief curator of philately at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum. The transcontinental railroad later cut delivery times from months to mere days.
Home mail delivery commenced in 1863 in major urban areas, a compassionate gesture during the Civil War, which enabled family connectivity through letters. The idea quickly gained popularity, leading to the establishment of rural free delivery by the early 1900s. By the 1920s, motorized vehicles had replaced horse-drawn mail wagons.
Meanwhile, airmail service began on May 15, 1918, with scheduled flights connecting Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and New York using Army aircraft and pilots. The postal service took over these operations and later handed them to fledgling private airlines.
During Rooseveltโs presidency, the postal system flourished under the New Deal, which saw the construction of 2,000 new post offices during the Great Depression. Mail volume further surged post-World War II, prompting the introduction of ZIP codes on July 1, 1963, to expedite and streamline sorting.
Resistance to these ZIP codes gave rise to Mr. ZIP, a postal character who eased public apprehension about the added numbers by proving they could enhance mail speed.
In 1970, worker dissatisfaction regarding wages led to a postal worker strike involving around 200,000 participants. This uprising prompted the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970, conferring collective bargaining rights and transitioning the taxpayer-supported Post Office Department into the financially independent U.S. Postal Service under the executive branch.
In more recent history, the U.S. Postal Service has faced anthrax threats, with contaminated letters causing fatalities and illnesses shortly after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. This prompted considerable alterations in mail sorting and worker safety procedures.
During the COVID-19 pandemic years later, postal employees, recognized as essential workers, were again mandated to don protective gear to continue serving the nation.