250 Years of US Postal Service (3)

In 2025, the United States celebrates a milestone: 250 years of postal service. This collection of postcards have been released one a month. All 12 align to form a timeline spanning from 1775 to 2025.

This postcard highlights the establishment of the Railway Post Office (RPO) in 1864.

At the time, mail was transported by various methods, including horseback, stagecoaches, steamboats, and trains.

For mail transported by train, the mail remained in sacks, unopened from one post office to the next. This system was inefficient and lead to delays.

The Railway Post Office introduced the innovation of sorting mail en route, significantly improving delivery speed and efficiency, and operated for over 113 years, from 1864 to 1977.

By 1951, the RPO network employed 30,000 clerks, utilized 3,200 cars, covered 165,000 miles, and handled 93% of all non-local mail.

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The 3rd postcard sent by Bryon (the USA) never made it. So, he kindly sent a replacement.
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