According to the
testimony of ancient historians, the first recorded hand written letter
(epistle) was by Persian Queen Atossa, around 500 BC. The leaves of plants and
the bark of trees advanced the use of writing. The linden tree was particularly
good allowing the folding of its bark. Egyptian papyrus made possible the
ancient libraries of Alexandria.
Jumping ahead to more
modern times, prior to 1840 letters were delivered by courier, coach or horse
rider. The receiver of the letter had to pay on its receipt and the cost was
dependant on the number of pages and distance travelled. To prevent the
contents of the letter from being read by others they were sealed using a
colored wax with ring or handheld seal.
In May 1840 Great
Britain introduced the first prepaid stamp nationwide postal delivery service,
with the Penny Black stamp (portrait of the young Queen Victoria) for letters
under half an ounce and the Two Penny Blue stamp for letters over. This was
soon followed by other countries introducing similar systems.
The United States postal system played a crucial
role in the national expansion. It facilitated an inexpensive, fast, convenient
communication system. The postal service helped integrate established areas
with the frontier, creating a spirit of nationalism and providing a necessary
infrastructure. You could now easily communicate your family updates to your
cousin Elizabeth in Virginia, all the way from your home in Massachusetts.
Personal communication now is sadly being
replaced by short bursts of text messages beeping on our phones and e-mails
clogging up our in-boxes. Let’s all put forth our best effort to make sure
letter writing does not become a lost art!
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