The Mail is Arriving Way too Late, Watchdog Reports, "Long-Distance Trade and Economy before and During the Age of Empires, Developments in Egypt's Early Islamic Postal System (with an Edition of P.Khalili Ii 5), The History of the Postal Monopoly in the United States, The Postal Service and the Hour as a Unit of Time in Antiquity, Spies and Mailmen and the Royal Road to Persia. In 1653, Frenchman Jean-Jacques Renouard de Villayer (1607–1691) established a postal system in Paris. Chapter I. The same type of courier service was likely used to administer taxes and keep up to date on far-flung reaches of most empires, such as the Persian empire in the Fertile Crescent (500–220 BCE), the Han dynasty in China (306 BCE–221 CE), the Islamic Empire (622–1923 CE) in Arabia, the Inca empire in Peru (1250–1550 CE), and the Mughal empire in India (1650–1857 CE). A 1796 report to the House gives some flavor of what a dog’s breakfast this system could be: “All the papers and packages delivered to distant customers and to be left at different offices and places, are put loose into the portmanteau with others, for subscribers less distant, and as often as the mail is opened the newspapers are thrown together out of the portmanteau in order to find the individual paper and package to be left at such office or place. Postal Service announced this morning. The story goes that a Cleveland, Ohio postal employee by the name of Joseph William Briggs was so torn up by seeing women lined up in the cold to see if a letter had arrived from a son or husband at the front lines that he started delivering mail to homes -- at no extra cost. Some companies offer unofficial naming rights for purchase. First day of scheduled airmail service, Belmont Park, New York, 1918 Courtesy Library of Congress Government mail delivery in Chicago began in 1831 with the appointment of a fur trader as the first postmaster. While an unfunded pension liability is a big reason for the USPS’ current distress, the post office could just as easily added “deficits” to the “rain, sleet, and snow” that it routinely overcomes. Think of it as a Bronze Age bill of lading. A courier might bring tokens to a seller for so many bushels of grain, or so many jars of olive oil, and the seller would send the tokens with the goods back to the buyer. The Birth of Modern Mail Systems In 1653, Frenchman Jean-Jacques Renouard de Villayer (1607–1691) established a postal system in Paris. This thesis is to treat the history of the rural free delivery system of the United States from its beginnings to the first of July 1920. The first envelopes protecting such messages from prying eyes were made of cloth, animal skins or vegetable parts. HISTORY. However, due to the efficiency of the postal service, there was a tremendous increase in mail volume, and the postal service began to implement a number system to help with delivery called the Zoning Improvement Plan, or the ZIP Code. Even if Saturday delivery does end, the world itself won’t. Both the Pony Express and Wells Fargo served as private mail carriers; it’s worth noting the Pony Express was never expected to make money. Paper envelopes were developed in China, where paper was invented in the 2nd century BCE. She is known for her independent films and documentaries, including one about Alexander Graham Bell. Later in Rome, a service called cursus publicus (or “the public way”) was created by Emperor Augustus to transport messages, public officials, and taxes. 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