Travelers mail17

You're referring to the Travelers' Mail, a fascinating piece of postal history!

The Travelers' Mail, also known as the "Travelers' Mail Service" or "Travelers' Mail Route," was a unique postal service that operated from 1869 to 1873 in the United States. It was a private mail service that aimed to provide faster and more reliable mail delivery between major cities and towns.

Here are some interesting facts about the Travelers' Mail:

  1. Private initiative: The Travelers' Mail was founded by a group of entrepreneurs who saw an opportunity to improve the existing postal system. They invested their own money and resources to establish a network of mail routes and stations.
  2. Faster delivery: The Travelers' Mail promised to deliver mail faster than the regular postal service. They used a network of horse-drawn coaches, stagecoaches, and trains to transport mail between cities, reducing delivery times by several days.
  3. Specialized routes: The Travelers' Mail operated on specific routes, often connecting major cities like New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Chicago. They also served smaller towns and rural areas that were not well-served by the regular postal service.
  4. Private mailboxes: Travelers' Mail customers could rent private mailboxes at their local post office or at designated Travelers' Mail stations. This allowed them to receive and send mail more efficiently.
  5. Competition with the US Postal Service: The Travelers' Mail posed a significant challenge to the US Postal Service, which was struggling to keep up with the growing demand for mail services. The private mail service attracted many customers who were dissatisfied with the slow and unreliable service offered by the USPS.
  6. Financial struggles: Despite its initial success, the Travelers' Mail faced significant financial challenges. The cost of maintaining the network of routes, stations, and personnel was high, and the service struggled to turn a profit.
  7. Merger with the USPS: In 1873, the Travelers' Mail was forced to merge with the US Postal Service due to financial difficulties. The USPS absorbed the Travelers' Mail routes and stations, and the private mail service ceased to exist.

The Travelers' Mail played an important role in the development of the US postal system, pushing the USPS to improve its services and efficiency. While it ultimately failed as a private enterprise, its legacy can be seen in the modern postal services that we enjoy today.