Mail Delivery
First Contract Airmail Flight
On February 15, 1926, the first contract airmail flight was made between Michigan and Ohio.
First U.S. Automated Post Office
On October 20, 1960, America’s first automated post office opened in Providence, Rhode Island.
First Helicopter Airmail Flight
On October 1, 1947, the first official Airmail service flown by helicopter was inaugurated in Los Angeles.
First Official U.S. Airmail Flight
On September 23, 1911, Earle Ovington made America’s first airmail delivery between Garden City and Mineola, New York.
Railway Mail
On July 7, 1838, Congress approved an act that declared all United States railroads as post roads. This would lead to a dramatic increase in the use of railroads to deliver mail.
Free City Mail Delivery
On July 1, 1863, the US Post Office inaugurated its free City Mail Delivery Service in part in response to the Civil War.
Start of V-Mail Service
On June 15, 1942, the Post Office Department inaugurated its V-Mail service. During World War II, letters bound for service personnel were photographed and transferred to microfilm. This special process enabled letters to take up a fraction of their usual space on planes going to war zones, allowing more room for crucial supplies.
First Commissioned Female Airmail Pilot
On May 23, 1918, Katherine Stinson became the first woman hired by the post office to deliver airmail in the US.
Graf Zeppelins Issued
On April 19, 1930, three special airmail stamps, the Graf Zeppelins, were made available for sale to be used exclusively on mail carried via the Graf Zeppelin on its European – Pan American flights the following month.