531:
712:
402:
had a strap around the middle, and the strap was tightened in preparation for pickup with an approximately equivalent weight of mail in either end of the pouch to prevent the heavier end from pulling the lighter end off the catcher arm. As the inbound pouch slammed into the catcher arm, the clerk kicked the outbound mail pouch out of the car, making certain to kick it far enough that it was not sucked back under the train. Outbound pouches of first class mail were sealed with a locked strap for security. Larger sacks with optional provisions for locking were used for newspapers, magazines, and parcel post. An employee of the local post office would retrieve the pouches and sacks and deliver them to the post office.
456:
668:
328:
507:
519:
495:
220:
271:
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73:
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174:
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fixtures that could be unfolded and set up in a number of configurations to hold mail pouches, racks and a sorting table as needed for specific routes. The fixtures were also designed so they could be folded away completely to provide a wholly open space to carry general baggage and express shipments as needed by the railroads. Harrison followed through with manufacturing his design at a factory he opened in
617:
39:
912:
the United States Post Office
Department in 1900 disclosed that postal expenditures were not and, in some cases, could not be apportioned to revenues. A remarkable anomaly in Maine, at the intersection of mail bags and a printing press, provided, at the time, a basis for costing questions of policy and regulation and, for us now, an understanding of the postal commons in its Golden Age."
676:
the POD cancelled all "mail by rail" contracts, electing to move all first class mail via air and other classes by road (truck) transport. This announcement had a devastating effect on passenger train revenues; the Santa Fe, for example, lost $ 35 million (US) in annual business, and led directly to the ending of many passenger rail routes.
193:). Purpose-built Railway Post Office (RPO) cars entered service on this line a few weeks after the service was initiated. They were used by staff to separate mail for connection with a westbound stagecoach departing soon after the train's arrival at St. Joseph. This service lasted approximately one year.
401:
With the train often operating at 70 mph or more, a postal clerk would have a pouch of mail ready to be dispatched as the train passed the station. In a co-ordinated movement, the catcher arm was swung out to catch the hanging mail pouch while the clerk stood in the open doorway. The mail pouch
335:
Because of the physical and mental demands placed on RPO clerks, the
Railway Mail Service pushed the adoption of standardized floor plans and fixtures for all RPO cars, with the first plans published in 1885. The RMS also pressed for improved lighting fixtures to help the clerks see the addresses on
123:
to carry mail aboard high-speed passenger trains. The
Railway Mail Service enforced various standardized designs on RPOs. A number of railway companies maintained nominally unprofitable passenger routes, having found that their financial losses from moving people were more than offset by transporting
911:
As the United States Postal
Service undergoes its fiscal crisis in the second decade of the 21st Century, it is well to note that these are not entirely new problems. A national pick up and delivery system to remote and small locales is a fiscally challenging model. "A Congressional Investigation of
675:
When the post office made a controversial policy change to process mail in large regional "sectional centers," mail was now sorted by large machines, not by people, and the remaining railway post office routes, along with all highway post office routes, were phased out of service. In
September 1967
643:
After 1948, the railway post office network began its decline although it remained the principal intercity mail transportation and distribution function within the Post Office
Department (POD). There were 794 RPO lines operating over 161,000 miles of railroad in that year. Only 262 RPO routes were
360:
frames and bodies, which sometimes resulted in catastrophe for RMS employees when the trains were involved in accidents. From 1900 to 1906 some 70 workers were killed in train wrecks while on duty in the RPOs, leading to demands for stronger steel cars. The RMS developed its first standards for car
318:
cars) were equipped and staffed to handle most back-end postal processing functions. First class mail, magazines and newspapers were all sorted, cancelled when necessary, and dispatched to post offices in towns along the route. Registered mail was also handled. The foreman in charge was required to
286:
in the United States. A complex network of interconnected routes allowed mail to be transported and delivered in a remarkably short time. As many as a dozen clerks might work in a single RPO car, although fewer would be required if part of the car was used for transport of previously sorted mail or
250:
RPO car interiors, which at first consisted of solid wood furniture and fixtures, were soon redesigned to support their new purpose. In 1879, an RMS employee named
Charles R. Harrison developed a new set of fixtures that soon gained widespread use. Harrison's design consisted of hinged, cast-iron
290:
Railway mail clerks were subjected to stringent training and regular testing of details regarding their handling of the mail. On a given RPO route, each clerk was expected to know not only the post offices and rail junctions along the route, but also specific local delivery details within each of
612:
At their height, RPO cars were used on over 9,000 train routes covering more than 200,000 route miles in North
America. While the majority of this service consisted of one or more cars at the head end of passenger trains, many railways operated solid mail trains between major cities; these solid
344:
Through the second half of the 19th century, most RPO cars were painted in a somewhat uniform color scheme regardless of the railroad that owned or operated them. Most were painted white with trim in either buff, red or blue, which made the cars stand out from the other cars. By the 1890s, this
266:
established government funding for the construction of a railroad from the
Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean in order to open a main line mail route across the western frontier. The act was officially entitled "AN ACT to aid in the construction of a railroad and telegraph line from the Missouri
776:
RPO #1102 and two coaches will be departing Union Depot as Train #1 bound for
Osceola, Wisconsin. It will be hauling commemorative envelopes and cards to be sent all across the United States, following which it will operate in regular service as part of the Museum operations out of Osceola, WI.
552:
Most RPO cars had a mail slot on the side of the car, so that mail could actually be deposited in the car, much like using the corner mail box, while the train was stopped at a station. Those desiring the fastest delivery would bring their letters to the train station for dispatch on the RPO,
373:
for framing and major structural components. The 1945 revisions also included a requirement for end posts to prevent telescoping in the event of a collision. Railway car manufacturers adopted these requirements and carried them through to all other models of passenger cars that they built.
398:) was awarded to L. F. Ward of Elyria, Ohio, on January 29, 1867. This was about a year after apparatus for picking up and setting down mailbags without stopping was installed for equivalent UK TPOs at Slough and Maidenhead, having first been patented in UK in 1838 by Nathaniel Worsdell.
368:
for the cars' major structural components and underframes. The core of the requirements was that each car should be able to withstand a buffer force of at least 400,000 pounds. This requirement was doubled to 800,000 pounds in a 1938 revision of the standards. The requirements were again
247:, was officially inaugurated to handle the transportation and sorting of mail aboard trains. Armstrong was promoted from a supervisory position in the Chicago post office following his experiments in 1864 with a converted route agent's car on runs between Chicago and Clinton, Iowa.
530:
267:
river to the Pacific Ocean, and to secure to the government the use of the same for postal, military, and other purposes". The Act authorized government-funded railroad mail routes across the American continent.
340:
in the 1890s and the first experiments with electric lighting in 1912. Clerks' safety was also of great concern to the RMS, with the first comprehensive statistics on work-related injuries published in 1877.
583:
existed between 1864 and September 30, 1948. It was renamed the Postal Transportation Service on October 1, 1948, and existed until 1960. After 1960, the management of railway post office routes as well as
455:
644:
still operating by January 1, 1962. In 1942, the POD began experimenting with a highway version of the RPO to serve the same purposes along routes where passenger train service was not available. These
207:
George B. Armstrong, assistant postmaster at Chicago, originally came up with the idea of having mail processed and distributed while the mail was on board, en route in mail cars. With the assistance of
158:
In the United States, some references suggest that the first shipment of mail carried on a train (sorted at the endpoints and carried in a bag on the train with other baggage) occurred in 1831 on the
204:. This service is distinguished from the 1862 operation because mail was sorted to and received from each post office along the route, as well as major post offices beyond the route's end-points.
648:(HPO) vehicles were initially intended to supplement RPO service, but in the 1950s and 1960s, HPOs often replaced railway post office cars after passenger train service was discontinued. The last
506:
753:
and twenty seats for paying passengers. Currently, it is the only Railway Post Office car known to be operational and currently certified for operation on commercial rail. The
1844:
474:
749:
The Minnesota Transportation Museum (MTM) maintains Northern Pacific #1102, a 1914 Mail RPO, that is classed as a "combine" car, having sections for the RPO,
244:
57:
757:(division of MTM/reporting mark MNTX) operates the car as part of its tour line, actually "catching the mail on the fly" as a part of its regular runs.
1879:
388:
An interesting feature of most RPO cars was a hook that could be used to snatch a leather or canvas pouch of outgoing mail hanging on a track-side
364:
In 1912, the Railway Mail Service developed a set of strength requirements for new cars in an effort to push the car building companies into using
345:
practice had waned as railroads painted their RPO cars to match the rest of their passenger equipment. One RPO car that was displayed at the 1893
275:
1436:
The American postal service: history of the postal service from the earliest times. The American system described with full details of operation
557:
just as if it had been mailed at a local post office, with the cancel giving the train number, endpoint cities of the RPO route, the date, and
518:
213:
170:
officially designated all railroads as official postal routes on July 7, 1838. Similar services were introduced on Canadian railroads in 1859.
915:
1492:
683:
was discontinued on June 30, 1977. The last route with a railway post office title was actually a boat run that lasted a year longer. This
624:
730:
Many RPO cars have been preserved in railroad museums across North America; some of the cars are kept in operational condition. In 1933,
133:
494:
1178:
381:(ICC) for all passenger MU locomotives as of April 1, 1956. They were extended to all passenger cars and locomotives in 1999 by the
1598:
731:
461:
152:
81:
1166:
679:
After 113 years of railway post office operation, the last surviving railway post office running on rails between New York and
291:
the larger cities served by the route. Periodic testing demanded both accuracy and speed in sorting mail, and a clerk scoring
711:
1434:
754:
1390:
The railway mail clerk and the highway post office: when the mail really worked: the story of the postal service's elite
1397:
1294:
1247:
1218:
792:
536:
Former Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad post office (1916), on display at RF&P Park, Glen Allen, VA.
426:
1408:
119:
From the middle of the 19th century, many American railroads earned substantial revenues through contracts with the
1849:
788:
780:
735:
692:
228:
186:
140:
1854:
761:
413:
with RPO: the RDC-3 combine and the RDC-4 (a baggage/mail/express only unit). These models were purchased by the
346:
1864:
1320:
1312:
378:
1550:
1177:
49 CFR Part 238, Subpart C, U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Railroad Administration, 2015 edition
565:
547:
224:
162:. Other sources state that the first official contract to regularly carry mail on a train was made with the
1639:
1629:
356:
progressed, so too did the development of RPO cars. The first plans for RPO car designs were based on light
1624:
1591:
880:
869:
593:
120:
1198:
Budd Company Red Lion Plant Order List, Philadelphia Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society.
336:
the mail they sorted, first by improving the reflectors in the 1880s, then calling for discontinuance of
163:
553:
knowing that overnight delivery would be virtually assured. The mail handled in this manner received a
327:
688:
667:
661:
446:
738:
in 1862. The railroad displayed the car in several cities along the railroad; it now resides at the
720:
1102:
Trolley Car Treasury' by Frank Rowsome Jr. McGraw-Hill, New York, 1956 -Library of Congress 56-11054
1874:
1869:
922:
824:
773:
684:
653:
601:
481:
438:
434:
295:
96% accuracy would likely receive a warning from the Railway Mail Service division superintendent.
159:
1520:
1179:
https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2015-title49-vol4/xml/CFR-2015-title49-vol4-part238-subpartC.xml
1859:
1584:
1496:
864:
465:
304:
85:
1526:
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1610:
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890:
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750:
716:
580:
252:
232:
167:
148:
144:
27:
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operates a post office car and all mail posted there gets an official USPS OC&T postmark.
181:
The railway post office was introduced in the United States on July 28, 1862, using converted
1464:
512:
A view of the mail hook on GN #42, along with a track-side mail crane complete with mail bag.
430:
331:
Interior of Great Northern Railway Post Office Car 42 at the California State Railroad Museum
143:. Sorting of mail en-route first occurred in the United Kingdom with the introduction of the
1167:
https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2015-title49-vol4/xml/CFR-2015-title49-vol4-sec229-141.xml
768:
as part of its "Last Mail Train" for National Train Day, 6 May 2017. At the end of the day,
104:
car that was normally operated in passenger service and used specifically for staff to sort
1783:
1235:
743:
671:
Cover carried on the last day of RPO service between New York and Washington, June 30, 1977
628:
485:
410:
353:
259:
240:
109:
196:
The first permanent Railway Post Office route was established on August 28, 1864, between
8:
585:
554:
136:
1199:
1066:
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in Scranton, PA has RPO car #1100, Louisville & Nashville, on display. It is an all-
1649:
1634:
1305:
854:
769:
739:
734:
rebuilt one of its baggage cars into a replica of the first RPOs that were used on the
696:
632:
422:
392:
at smaller towns where the train did not stop. The first US patent for such a device (
20:
1682:
1576:
1423:
1393:
1326:
1316:
1300:
1290:
1243:
1214:
1012:
874:
589:
442:
418:
197:
53:
1030:
219:
1814:
1793:
1672:
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1450:
1416:
1239:
680:
414:
270:
1410:
The Story of Our Post Office: The Greatest Government Department in all its Phases
216:, Third Assistant Postmaster General, Armstrong was authorized to test his ideas.
1712:
1535:
1516:
1460:
1368:
1355:
1348:
29 Years to Oblivion, The Last Years of Railway Mail Service in the United States
885:
815:
597:
283:
263:
209:
113:
282:
By the 1880s, railway post office routes were operating on the vast majority of
1687:
1607:
573:
377:
The 800,000-lb buffer load and end post requirements were later adopted by the
623:
postal cancellation applied to mail handled in the railway post office car of
568:
between the killer bars . Collecting such cancellations is a pastime of many
349:
in Chicago is one of the last known examples of the early white color scheme.
1838:
1809:
1788:
1692:
1566:
1351:
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829:
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201:
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en route, in order to speed delivery. The RPO was staffed by highly trained
48:
394:
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1484:
1330:
1135:
724:
406:
190:
1768:
1747:
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carry a regulation pistol while on duty to discourage theft of the mail.
182:
72:
1742:
1722:
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77:
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strengthened in 1945 with specifications that precluded the use of
101:
1067:"Pacific Railroad Act – Transcontinental Railroad and Land Grants"
1823:
1819:
1778:
1667:
1571:
893:— the term for cars in British use that served similar functions.
1087:
Mosher, Willard C. (1982). "Railway Postal Service – Revisted".
1528:
The Railway Mail Service United States Mail Railway Post Office
1287:
Mail by Rail – The History of the TPO & Post Office Railway
616:
307:
car was noted for making circuits of the city to pick up mail.
132:
The world's first official carriage of mail by rail was by the
1211:
Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway: The Dixie Line
1264:"Oil Creek and Titusville Railroad – Titusville Pennsylvania"
784:
382:
365:
760:
As part of the 40th anniversary of the end of RPO service,
112:
postal clerks, and was off-limits to the passengers on the
105:
916:"It's in the Bag" – The Shape of Turn-of-the-Century Mail"
524:
Belfast & Moosehead Lake RR #15 RPO, Belfast, ME 1947
139:
in November 1830, using adapted railway carriages on the
1553:— photographs and short history of an RPO built in 1950.
287:(often in a separate compartment) express and baggage.
1606:
613:
mail trains would often carry 300 tons of mail daily.
1200:
http://www.trainweb.org/phillynrhs/BuddCarOrders.html
1002:
1000:
1428:. New York: Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation.
1263:
805:
1845:
History of rail transportation in the United States
500:
A close-up view of the mail hook on CB&Q #1923.
26:For the equivalent term in the UK and Ireland, see
1470:The Fast Mail, History of the Railway Mail Service
1304:
1011:. Vol. 7, no. 3. Fall 2006. p. 27.
997:
409:offered two versions of its self-propelled diesel
1483:, National Railway Bulletin Vol. 60 No. 2, 1995,
1091:(March 1982). The 470 Railroad Club: 11 & 12.
687:was the Lake Winnipesaukee RPO operating between
579:The Railway Mail Service organization within the
361:design in 1891 to address some of these issues.
1836:
1493:"Railroad Postmarks of the U.S.], 1861–1886"
1229:
635:train No. 5, the inaugural eastbound run of the
1534:. Marietta, OH: Railway Mail Service Library,
1455:National Postal Transport Association. (1956)
1413:. Boston, Massachusetts: A.M. Thayer & Co.
1392:. Victoria, B.C, Canada: Trafford Publishing.
1165:49 CFR Part 229.141, 2015 edition (10-1-2015)
310:In the United States, RPO cars (also known as
189:(which also delivered the first letter to the
1592:
1551:Great Northern Railway Post Office Car No. 42
303:systems were also known to operate RPOs. The
625:Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway
1491:Towle, Charles L.; Meyer, Henry A. (1958).
972:
970:
968:
1599:
1585:
1490:
1439:. Washington, D.C.: National Capital Press
1041:
464:#1923, a heavyweight RPO preserved at the
1183:
1150:
1115:
913:
607:
480:The interior of an RPO on display at the
1880:1862 establishments in the United States
1519:. Portion available as a video clip at
1463:. Portion available as a video clip at
1387:
1139:, March 16, 1906, p6, Last night's news
988:
979:
965:
710:
666:
615:
326:
269:
218:
212:, Speaker of the House at the time, and
172:
71:
1524:
1406:
1369:The World's Work: A History of Our Time
914:DeBlois, Diane; Harris, Robert Dalton.
732:Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
462:Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
153:Railways (Conveyance of Mails) Act 1838
82:Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
1837:
1432:
1361:
1086:
1082:
1080:
541:
227:#42, a restored RPO on display at the
1580:
1472:, Prologue Vol. 37 No. 3, Fall 2005,
1299:
877:French Post Office dedicated TGV sets
699:. The final date it operated with a
1511:U.S. Post Office Department. (1956)
1421:
764:will be placing #1102 on display at
151:, following the introduction of the
32:
1307:The American Railroad Passenger Car
1213:by Charles B. Castner, Jr. page 92
1077:
755:Osceola and St Croix Valley Railway
124:the mail on such passenger routes.
121:U.S. Post Office Department (USPOD)
92:In Canada and the United States, a
13:
1339:
1124:
322:
14:
1891:
1544:
1362:Crissy, Forrest (December 1902).
1289:, Ian Allan Publishing, London.
793:Oil Creek and Titusville Railroad
1560:is available for viewing at the
1558:of a train picking up a mail bag
1515:, Railway Mail Service Library,
1459:, Railway Mail Service Library,
808:
789:American Car and Foundry Company
781:Steamtown National Historic Site
736:Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad
529:
517:
505:
493:
473:
454:
229:California State Railroad Museum
187:Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad
141:Liverpool and Manchester Railway
37:
1256:
1223:
1204:
1192:
1171:
1159:
1141:
1106:
1095:
905:
762:Minnesota Transportation Museum
706:
1313:Johns Hopkins University Press
1232:California's Electric Railways
1059:
1050:
1023:
956:
379:Interstate Commerce Commission
1:
1789:Troop kitchen / Troop sleeper
1525:Wilking, Clarence R. (1985).
1481:The Evolution of Railway Mail
944:
715:The RPO section of preserved
594:terminal railway post offices
566:Postal Transportation Service
548:Postal Transportation Service
166:in either 1834 or 1835. The
949:
881:Terminal railway post office
870:Railway mail service library
652:RPO service was operated by
347:World's Columbian Exposition
7:
1422:Long, Bryant Alden (1951).
1364:"The Traveling Post-Office"
801:
447:Minneapolis & St. Louis
164:Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
46:It has been suggested that
16:Mail transportation service
10:
1896:
1567:Mobile Post Office Society
1407:Cushing, Marshall (1893).
1352:Mobile Post Office Society
1278:
662:San Bernardino, California
545:
127:
96:, commonly abbreviated as
63:Proposed since April 2024.
25:
18:
1802:
1756:
1658:
1617:
1346:Bergman, Edwin B. (1980)
1230:Demoro, Harre W. (1986).
1007:"First as well as fast".
787:car built in 1914 by the
721:Interurban Railway Museum
276:Chicago and North Western
898:
825:Boat railway post office
774:Northern Pacific Railway
703:was September 30, 1978.
689:The Weirs, New Hampshire
685:boat railway post office
654:Pacific Electric Railway
602:Bureau of Transportation
561:Railway Mail Service or
482:National Railroad Museum
439:Canadian Pacific Railway
160:South Carolina Rail Road
19:Not to be confused with
1850:Passenger railroad cars
1757:Miscellaneous equipment
1572:TPO and Seapost Society
1513:MEN AND MAIL IN TRANSIT
1285:Johnson, Peter. (1995)
1035:www.catskillarchive.com
865:Post Office sorting van
466:Illinois Railway Museum
305:Boston Elevated Railway
86:Illinois Railway Museum
1855:Philatelic terminology
1650:Travelling Post Office
1474:College Park, Maryland
1433:Melius, Louis (1917).
1388:Culbreth, Ken (2007).
891:Travelling post office
766:Saint Paul Union Depot
751:Railway Express Agency
727:
717:Texas Electric Railway
672:
640:
608:Decline and withdrawal
600:, were shifted to the
581:Post Office Department
352:As the development of
332:
279:
253:Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
236:
225:Great Northern Railway
178:
168:United States Congress
149:Grand Junction Railway
145:travelling post office
89:
80:pulling a mail bag on
28:Travelling Post Office
1865:Postal infrastructure
714:
670:
656:on its route between
619:
431:Pacific Great Eastern
330:
274:A working RPO on the
273:
222:
176:
75:
1499:on November 18, 2011
1236:Glendale, California
744:St. Joseph, Missouri
486:Green Bay, Wisconsin
260:Pacific Railroad Act
241:Railway Mail Service
223:An interior view of
177:The first RPO (1862)
110:Railway Mail Service
56:into this article. (
1645:Railway post office
1611:passenger equipment
646:highway post office
586:Highway Post Office
542:Cancellation stamps
245:George B. Armstrong
137:General Post Office
94:railway post office
1659:Passenger-carrying
1635:Head end power car
1618:Head-end equipment
1479:Pennypacker, Bert
1468:Romanski, Fred J.
1056:White, pp 481–482.
1047:White, pp 475–476.
1031:"Mail Post Office"
928:on August 15, 2013
855:Mobile post office
770:Great Northern 400
740:Patee House Museum
728:
697:Lake Winnipesaukee
673:
641:
423:New Haven Railroad
419:Boston & Maine
395:U.S. patent 61,584
333:
280:
258:The July 1, 1862,
237:
179:
90:
21:Retail Post Outlet
1832:
1831:
1738:Sleeper / Pullman
1311:. Baltimore, MD:
875:SNCF TGV La Poste
590:Air Mail Facility
443:Canadian National
405:In the 1950s the
264:President Lincoln
243:(RMS), headed by
198:Chicago, Illinois
70:
69:
65:
1887:
1815:Rail motor coach
1794:Vestibuled train
1601:
1594:
1587:
1578:
1577:
1562:Internet Archive
1539:
1533:
1508:
1506:
1504:
1495:. Archived from
1451:Internet Archive
1448:
1446:
1444:
1429:
1417:Internet archive
1414:
1403:
1384:
1382:
1381:
1334:
1310:
1272:
1271:
1260:
1254:
1253:
1240:Interurban Press
1227:
1221:
1208:
1202:
1196:
1190:
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1181:
1175:
1169:
1163:
1157:
1154:
1148:
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1045:
1039:
1038:
1027:
1021:
1020:
1004:
995:
992:
986:
983:
977:
974:
963:
960:
938:
937:
935:
933:
927:
921:. Archived from
920:
909:
818:
813:
812:
811:
719:Car 360, at the
681:Washington, D.C.
598:transfer offices
533:
521:
509:
497:
477:
458:
435:Northern Pacific
415:New York Central
397:
284:passenger trains
134:United Kingdom's
61:
41:
40:
33:
1895:
1894:
1890:
1889:
1888:
1886:
1885:
1884:
1875:Postal vehicles
1870:Postal services
1835:
1834:
1833:
1828:
1798:
1752:
1661:coaches or cars
1660:
1654:
1613:
1605:
1547:
1542:
1536:Boyce, Virginia
1531:
1517:Boyce, Virginia
1502:
1500:
1461:Boyce, Virginia
1442:
1440:
1400:
1379:
1377:
1356:Omaha, Nebraska
1342:
1340:Further reading
1337:
1323:
1281:
1276:
1275:
1262:
1261:
1257:
1250:
1228:
1224:
1209:
1205:
1197:
1193:
1188:
1184:
1176:
1172:
1164:
1160:
1155:
1151:
1146:
1142:
1125:
1120:
1116:
1111:
1107:
1100:
1096:
1085:
1078:
1065:
1064:
1060:
1055:
1051:
1046:
1042:
1029:
1028:
1024:
1006:
1005:
998:
993:
989:
984:
980:
975:
966:
961:
957:
952:
947:
942:
941:
931:
929:
925:
918:
910:
906:
901:
896:
886:Transfer office
816:Illinois portal
814:
809:
807:
804:
798:
709:
637:City of Memphis
610:
550:
544:
537:
534:
525:
522:
513:
510:
501:
498:
489:
478:
469:
459:
393:
325:
323:Standardization
210:Schuyler Colfax
147:in 1838 on the
130:
66:
42:
38:
31:
24:
17:
12:
11:
5:
1893:
1883:
1882:
1877:
1872:
1867:
1862:
1860:Postal history
1857:
1852:
1847:
1830:
1829:
1827:
1826:
1817:
1812:
1806:
1804:
1800:
1799:
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1705:
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1695:
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1680:
1675:
1670:
1664:
1662:
1656:
1655:
1653:
1652:
1647:
1642:
1637:
1632:
1630:Express reefer
1627:
1621:
1619:
1615:
1614:
1608:Rail transport
1604:
1603:
1596:
1589:
1581:
1575:
1574:
1569:
1564:
1554:
1546:
1545:External links
1543:
1541:
1540:
1522:
1509:
1488:
1477:
1466:
1457:MAIL IN MOTION
1453:
1430:
1419:
1404:
1398:
1385:
1359:
1343:
1341:
1338:
1336:
1335:
1321:
1301:White, John H.
1297:
1282:
1280:
1277:
1274:
1273:
1255:
1248:
1242:. p. 19.
1222:
1203:
1191:
1182:
1170:
1158:
1149:
1140:
1123:
1114:
1105:
1094:
1076:
1058:
1049:
1040:
1022:
1009:Classic Trains
996:
987:
978:
964:
954:
953:
951:
948:
946:
943:
940:
939:
903:
902:
900:
897:
895:
894:
888:
883:
878:
872:
867:
862:
857:
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842:
837:
832:
827:
821:
820:
819:
803:
800:
708:
705:
609:
606:
574:postal history
546:Main article:
543:
540:
539:
538:
535:
528:
526:
523:
516:
514:
511:
504:
502:
499:
492:
490:
479:
472:
470:
460:
453:
354:passenger cars
324:
321:
129:
126:
68:
67:
45:
43:
36:
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
1892:
1881:
1878:
1876:
1873:
1871:
1868:
1866:
1863:
1861:
1858:
1856:
1853:
1851:
1848:
1846:
1843:
1842:
1840:
1825:
1821:
1818:
1816:
1813:
1811:
1810:Multiple unit
1808:
1807:
1805:
1801:
1795:
1792:
1790:
1787:
1785:
1782:
1780:
1777:
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1706:
1704:
1701:
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1684:
1681:
1679:
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1641:
1638:
1636:
1633:
1631:
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1626:
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1622:
1620:
1616:
1612:
1609:
1602:
1597:
1595:
1590:
1588:
1583:
1582:
1579:
1573:
1570:
1568:
1565:
1563:
1559:
1555:
1552:
1549:
1548:
1537:
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1529:
1523:
1521:
1518:
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1510:
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1478:
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1462:
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1438:
1437:
1431:
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1426:
1420:
1418:
1412:
1411:
1405:
1401:
1399:9781412202275
1395:
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1375:
1371:
1370:
1365:
1360:
1357:
1353:
1349:
1345:
1344:
1332:
1328:
1324:
1318:
1314:
1309:
1308:
1302:
1298:
1296:
1295:0-7110-2385-9
1292:
1288:
1284:
1283:
1269:
1265:
1259:
1251:
1249:0-916374-74-2
1245:
1241:
1237:
1233:
1226:
1220:
1219:0-911868-87-9
1216:
1212:
1207:
1201:
1195:
1186:
1180:
1174:
1168:
1162:
1156:White, p 190.
1153:
1147:White, p 483.
1144:
1138:
1137:
1134:
1130:
1129:
1121:White, p 480.
1118:
1112:White, p 482.
1109:
1103:
1098:
1090:
1083:
1081:
1072:
1068:
1062:
1053:
1044:
1036:
1032:
1026:
1018:
1014:
1010:
1003:
1001:
994:White, p 475.
991:
982:
976:White, p 472.
973:
971:
969:
962:Johnson 1995.
959:
955:
924:
917:
908:
904:
892:
889:
887:
884:
882:
879:
876:
873:
871:
868:
866:
863:
861:
858:
856:
853:
851:
848:
846:
843:
841:
838:
836:
833:
831:
830:Catcher pouch
828:
826:
823:
822:
817:
806:
799:
796:
794:
790:
786:
782:
778:
775:
771:
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758:
756:
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747:
745:
741:
737:
733:
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722:
718:
713:
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690:
686:
682:
677:
669:
665:
663:
659:
655:
651:
647:
638:
634:
630:
626:
622:
618:
614:
605:
603:
599:
595:
591:
587:
582:
577:
576:researchers.
575:
571:
567:
564:
560:
556:
549:
532:
527:
520:
515:
508:
503:
496:
491:
487:
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476:
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467:
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457:
452:
451:
450:
448:
444:
440:
436:
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412:
408:
403:
399:
396:
391:
386:
384:
380:
375:
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367:
362:
359:
355:
350:
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339:
329:
320:
317:
313:
308:
306:
302:
298:
294:
288:
285:
277:
272:
268:
265:
261:
256:
254:
248:
246:
242:
239:In 1869, the
234:
230:
226:
221:
217:
215:
211:
205:
203:
202:Clinton, Iowa
199:
194:
192:
188:
184:
175:
171:
169:
165:
161:
156:
154:
150:
146:
142:
138:
135:
125:
122:
117:
115:
111:
107:
103:
99:
95:
87:
84:#1923 at the
83:
79:
74:
64:
59:
55:
51:
50:
49:Catcher pouch
44:
35:
34:
29:
22:
1644:
1556:A film clip
1527:
1512:
1501:. Retrieved
1497:the original
1485:Philadelphia
1480:
1469:
1456:
1441:. Retrieved
1435:
1425:Mail by Rail
1424:
1409:
1389:
1378:. Retrieved
1373:
1367:
1347:
1306:
1286:
1267:
1258:
1231:
1225:
1210:
1206:
1194:
1189:White, p 476
1185:
1173:
1161:
1152:
1143:
1136:Daily Mirror
1133:
1132:
1128:
1127:
1117:
1108:
1101:
1097:
1088:
1071:www.cprr.org
1070:
1061:
1052:
1043:
1034:
1025:
1008:
990:
985:White, p 473
981:
958:
930:. Retrieved
923:the original
907:
797:
779:
759:
748:
729:
725:Plano, Texas
707:Preservation
678:
674:
645:
642:
636:
620:
611:
578:
570:philatelists
562:
558:
555:cancellation
551:
407:Budd Company
404:
400:
387:
376:
363:
351:
343:
334:
315:
311:
309:
292:
289:
281:
257:
249:
238:
214:A. N. Zevely
206:
195:
191:Pony Express
183:baggage cars
180:
157:
131:
118:
97:
93:
91:
76:Demo of the
62:
47:
1713:Observation
1683:Compartment
1376:: 2873–2880
860:Owney (dog)
693:Bear Island
658:Los Angeles
427:Rock Island
358:baggage car
1839:Categories
1503:August 21,
1443:August 15,
1380:2009-07-10
1322:0801819652
945:References
932:August 16,
845:Mail pouch
650:interurban
390:mail crane
297:Interurban
262:signed by
233:Sacramento
1803:Motorized
1728:Passenger
1693:Couchette
1640:Horse car
1268:octrr.org
1017:1527-0718
950:Citations
850:Mail sack
840:Mail hook
629:Nashville
371:aluminium
338:oil lamps
312:mail cars
301:Streetcar
255:in 1881.
78:mail hook
1774:Crew car
1764:Autorack
1733:Roomette
1688:Corridor
1678:Colonist
1532:(MSWord)
1303:(1978).
835:Mail bag
802:See also
701:postmark
588:routes,
278:in 1965.
102:railroad
100:, was a
1824:Railbus
1820:Railcar
1784:Private
1769:Combine
1748:Smoking
1673:Bilevel
1625:Baggage
1331:2798188
1279:Sources
1089:The 470
633:Memphis
185:on the
128:History
58:Discuss
1723:Parlor
1708:Lounge
1698:Dining
1396:
1329:
1319:
1293:
1246:
1217:
1015:
791:. The
691:, and
631:&
621:R.P.O.
596:, and
316:postal
200:, and
54:merged
926:(PDF)
919:(PDF)
899:Notes
785:steel
383:USDOT
366:steel
114:train
1743:Slip
1718:Open
1703:Dome
1505:2012
1445:2012
1394:ISBN
1327:OCLC
1317:ISBN
1291:ISBN
1244:ISBN
1215:ISBN
1013:ISSN
934:2012
660:and
572:and
445:and
299:and
293:only
106:mail
1779:Pay
1668:Bar
1449:at
1415:at
742:in
723:in
695:on
627:'s
563:PTS
559:RMS
484:in
411:RDC
314:or
231:in
98:RPO
52:be
1841::
1822:/
1372:.
1366:.
1354:,
1350:,
1325:.
1315:.
1266:.
1238::
1234:.
1079:^
1069:.
1033:.
999:^
967:^
772:,
746:.
664:.
604:.
592:,
449:.
441:,
437:,
433:,
429:,
425:,
421:,
417:,
385:.
155:.
116:.
1600:e
1593:t
1586:v
1538:.
1507:.
1487:.
1476:.
1447:.
1402:.
1383:.
1374:V
1358:.
1333:.
1270:.
1252:.
1126:'
1073:.
1037:.
1019:.
936:.
639:.
488:.
468:.
235:.
88:.
60:)
30:.
23:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
