Search This Blog

Friday, January 16, 2015

Before the Post Office was the Postal Service



I just hate it when I do my research, get my story written and published, and then find out one of my details is historically incorrect.

I recently finished reading my second novel set in the 1800s in which the authors referred to the U.S. Postal Service delivering mail. Oops! That is not historically correct. In fact, novels set in more modern times may run into trouble describing mail delivery if the author isn’t careful.

Most people use the terms POST OFFICE and POSTAL SERVICE--with or without the U.S. in front--interchangeably. Part of the reason is that when we go to our local building where we mail letters and parcels or buy stamps, we call it the Post Office even though that facility is part of the Postal Service system. Also, many of us were alive when mail service was still part of the federal government Post Office Department.
Post Office Building, Chicago, Illinois, circa 1930s

However, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) did not come into existence until the passage of the Postal Reform Act in August, 1970. Yes, you read that correctly: NINETEEN seventy. The U.S. Postal Service officially started to operate as an independent non-profit corporation in 1971. Before that, it was the Post Office.

These details can be important to your writing if you want to stay credible. For example, in my novel, Family Secrets, my main character’s grandfather, Mike Carpenter, returned from the Vietnam War in 1968 and got a job delivering mail as a city carrier. Assuming he began work within months of being discharged from the Army, he would have been hired by the Post Office Department under the old Civil Service program. Years later when he retired, he was employed by the U.S. Postal Service. Whether I describe him as working for the Post Office or the Postal Service depends where in time I am in the story.

What many people do not realize is that because of that change in 1971, the Postal Service, unlike the old Post Office, does not receive any tax revenues to operate. Those who work for the Postal Service are still federal employees although the contracts for the different postal crafts often have slightly different provisions than other federal employees. But, the Postal Service is expected to operate on revenues it receives from sales and services provided.

Another key change took place about the same time this Act was being passed. Starting in 1969, postmasters and rural letter carriers were no longer awarded their jobs based on political patronage. When I started as a rural carrier, I worked with some old-timers who were proud that they had been awarded their positions by their congressman. When I applied for the job in 1989, I took a civil service exam and waited to be called for an interview based on test scores, no congressman involved. In order to get my job, I did not need to worry about whether or not I had served in the armed forces (although veterans do get point preferences that gives them a bit of an edge), belonged to the same political party as my congressman or met one or more criteria that are often involved in political patronage situations.


Having a character in your story being awarded a postmaster position due to political patronage--or not, because of political differences--can provide an interesting plot element. Just make sure the timing is right for this to occur.


Postal Clerks on railroad Post Office cars 1921
In Family Secrets, Mike’s daughter tells how her father likes to visit the rail museum in Old Town Sacramento. His favorite car was the mail car. For years, the Post Office used trains to transport mail. When his daughter was young, he would describe to her how the postal clerks who worked in railroad cars sorted mail for the different cities similarly to how he prepared the mail for his route.

This 1921 photo of a mail car from the USPS site I found interesting. After numerous mail thefts on trains after World War 1, in 1921 the Post Office started having the clerks wear pistols while they worked. They were given orders to shoot to kill any would-be thief in order to protect the mail. Up until 1939 there were also times U.S. Marines rode the trains to protect the mail.

Trust me, times have changed. In today’s world, if postal employees show up at a Postal facility toting guns, they can expect to be arrested and probably lose their jobs.

More Postal trivia:
1888 City Carriers in New York City

If you are writing in a historical setting, don’t have your characters in the city receiving mail delivery before 1863. It didn’t happen.










Early Rural Free Delivery carrier

As for Rural Free Delivery, the very first free delivery to folks living in the country started in 1896 as an experiment and did not become an adopted practice until 1902.








If you are talking about addressing letters, the Post Office started adding zones to their addresses in 1943, but Mr. ZIP did not come along until 1963. ZIP+4 made its debut in 1983.

Last but not least, keep in mind that the Postal Service does not accept, transport and deliver packages. They are called PARCELS. 




You can find a timeline of historical details about mail delivery on the USPS site at:

You can also find a concise timeline on postal history at this website: http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blmailustimeline.htm

For a more complete history of mail delivery in the United States, visit the USPS website at:
 
Zina Abbott is the pen name used by Robyn Echols. Her novel, Family Secrets, may be purchased from Amazon, Nook and Smashwords.


10 comments:

  1. Some of what you shared, I knew from my own research, but I certainly learned a lot more. Thank you. :-) I've had the same thing happen to me that you did: I finished a story and OMGosh, I realized a point of history I'd included was way off the mark. *gasp*

    I have a story-in-progress in which a 'parcel' *grin* is sent from Chicago to New York in 1929. I've had the dickens of a time figuring out what happens to the parcel once it gets to a post office in New York (and there were several). Oh, the challenges (and rewards) of writing historical romances.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Kaye. One of the things that really caught me off-guard when I started working for the Postal Service was to learn that the word "parcel" was the proper word for what I always had called packages. Good luck on your postal research. You'll have to see how long they have had processing plants for the mail. I know when I read about the Chicago P.O. of the 1930s (Photo was featured in this blog), it was set up to receive out of town mail by rail. When more of the mail started being moved by airplane and truck, they had to revamp the whole building. Just a thought.

      Robyn Echols writing as Zina Abbott

      Delete
  2. Wow, I learned a ton today, Zina-Robyn! And I absolutely love Old Sacramento. The rail user is nt t be missed.mims loved the train dining car with all the different China patterns. Best wishes with this wonderful story!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Tanya. Isn't the rail museum great? A lot of towns have them, and I have decided that when we plan our sight-seeing trips, those are among the museums and collections I want to visit.

      Robyn Echols writing as Zina Abbott

      Delete
  3. I feel like I must be a dinosaur. I remember many of the changes you mentioned including the zip codes. Still, I would have missed your techno-glitch. Of course, finding these little details as we research is what makes writing historical fiction challenging, but also, fun and interesting.
    I like all the pictures you included. It helps to have a visual idea of the subject. This was a very interesting post, Robyn. Well done.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Sarah. I remember a lot, too. But, it is learning the details for our books that keeps it interesting. And, yes, I love pictures--including the one of my "helper." When I was working as a release-time union steward, I often used USPS half-trays for office equipment. This cat could never pass up turning a box into a bed. Glad you enjoyed the photos.

      Robyn Echols writing as Zina Abbott

      Delete
  4. Am sharing this post with my husband and sending it to work with him to share with the postmaster, other clerk, and the carriers.
    Thanks for an interesting post.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love reading about history and I am so happy to have come across this amazing post. I am going to save it and write it my journals too. I always wondered how medical courier deliveries were done at that time. I simply loved this piece of information a lot.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Track USPS Shipments and packages from here

    ReplyDelete
  7. "At PostalEASE, the phone version of the Liteblue USPS Gov employee portal, employees can begin TSP .gov payments or access Federal Employees Health Benefits. Visit the Liteblue PostalEASE website for more." postalease liteblue gov

    ReplyDelete