Page:Historical and Biographical Annals of Columbia and Montour Counties, Pennsylvania, Containing a Concise History of the Two Counties and a Genealogical and Biographical Record of Representative Families.djvu/68

COLUMBIA AND MONTOUR COUNTIES 39 the penny post having been established in 1753. He found many abuses in force, but failed to correct them.

in 1811 the United States government ordered a topographical survey of the post road from Passamaquoddy to St. Mary's, in Massachusetts, and in 1815 published a list of the post towns of the country, their distances apart and the charges for letters delivered. To make this information more available to the people the report was printed on linen handkerchiefs and sold at a low rate. Some of these unique records are still in a good state of preservation.

According to this table a single letter was conveyed for a distance of 10 miles or less for 6 cents; up to 60 miles, 8 cents; 100 miles, 10 cents; up to 250 miles, 17 cents; and for 450 miles a fee of 25 cents was charged. The first post office route was established in Pennsylvania in 1683 William Penn, between Philadelphia and New Castle. Del. The first postmaster of Philadelphia was Benjamin Franklin, in 1737. In 1753 he was made postmaster for the Colonies, and in 1775 was appointed postmaster general by the Continental Congress.

The rates on letters in this State remained the same as in the above table until 1842. All letters had to be prepaid, postage averaging 12 cents each, and the postmaster was obliged to give the sender a receipt and then forward a description of the letter, the amount of postage paid, the date of sending and other necessary information to the department at Washington. Fortunately for the old postmasters there were few letters transmitted in those days.

The high rates, the poor service and other causes brought into existence many private expresses, which carried letters in defiance of the law for much less than that charged by the government.

Berwick first appears as a post village in 1797. Three years later Jonathan Hancock carried the mail over the route from Wilkes- Barre.

A pony mail was established in 1806 from Danville to Sunbury, the round trip being made in a week. It took two weeks for an answer to be received from Philadelphia. The route from Sunbury to Painted Post was awarded in 1811 to Conrad Teter. who sublet the route from Wilkes-Barre to Miller Horton. The route from Shickshinny to Jerseytown. through the Fishing Creek post office, was established in 1815.

A mail route from Fairmount Springs, Luzerne county, to Tancyville, Lycoming county, by way of Cole’s Creek, Campbell and Division, was operated on contract by James N. Park, his son Orrin being the carrier. All mail was carried on foot over the rough and almost pathless country, and it was not till 1848 that the amount of mail matter warranted the use of a horse.

In 1856 Capt. John Derr ran the tri-weekly mail coach from the Exchange Hotel at Bloomsburg to the White Hall Hotel at Whitehall. In 1857 the route was extended to Turbotville.

The post office department reduced the rates in 1845 to 5 cents for a half ounce, over a radius of 300 miles; a greater distance costing 10 cents. As usual, the letters had to be prepaid. In 1847 stamps were first introduced, but did not come into general use until 1855. Rates were reduced to 3 cents in 1863, and again in 1883 to 2 cents for each half ounce. Free delivery of letters over a restricted route in large cities took effect in 1863. In 1865 it was extended to cover small cities, and in 1873, and then in 1887, the delivery system was made applicable to small towns and villages.

In 1896 the rural free delivery, which has caused the abolition of so many small post offices, was tested in different sections with such success that it was greatly extended in 1904 and later years. At present the rural routes arc being extended as fast as conditions warrant into every part of the Union.

Two of the latest additions to the conveniences of the post office, which have in a short time become absolute necessities, are the postal savings hanks and the parcel post. The latter was declared hut a few years ago by interested parties to be impossible of establishment, yet in the two years of its existence it has demonstrated its great value and almost put the great express companies out of business.

RAILWAY MAIL SERVICE

The first railway mail car was given an official test in 1864. Two mice were responsible for the introduction of the traveling post office. Before that date the mail was distributed according to the addresses at certain designated post offices, which usually were the distributing points of whole States. It was slow and laborious work. At one of these distributing points, Green Bay, Wis., a pair