Mailbox Near Me

Looking to mail that important letter, bill, or invitation? Have no fear! The United States Postal service has mailboxes, drop offs, and locations smattered throughout every community, town, and city coast to coast. Whether you’re looking to ship a package, buy some stamps, or simply mail that electric bill, there’s a USPS location close to you.

Are you interested in finding a mailbox or post office near you? Simply browse mailbox near me on the map below and find a list of official postal mailboxes and USPS locations located near your current point on the map. Need a bit more information on the USPS? Read on for facts, trivia, and so much more. You might just learn something new!

Mailbox Near Me – Find it on the Map

Mailbox Near Me – Mailbox Trivia

True or false: The very first postal service was in a bar.

Odds are if you’ve been to a bar lately, you’re not expecting to find a counter in which you can buy stamps or ship your cousin a package. Instead, you’ll be met with a bevy of drinkers, diners, and boisterous customers. In the past, this wasn’t always the case. Consider this as you search mailbox near me. When the United States post office was first established in 1639, it was located in a Boston home, which was also a tavern. Richard Fairbanks was the owner of the tavern/post office. During colonial times, bars weren’t treated as they are in the modern day. They were a place of meeting and discussion. You wouldn’t be hard pressed to find scholars, politicians, and law professionals meeting at a bar to discuss the most pressing issues of the day. Bars were also watering holes for locals. Everyone knew where the local bar was located and most passed through sometime throughout the day. If you think about it, there was some sense in the location of the very first post office!

USPS mailboxes can be found on many street corners and outside of any post office location.

True or false: Newspapers owe their existence to the postal service.

Back during the early years of American history, there was no better way to spread information accurately and professionally than through the newspaper. Since modern media outlets such as the television and even the radio weren’t a thing, newspaper was the only reliable source of news that an individual could rely upon. As you search mailbox near me, consider how the newspaper owes its existence to the postal service. As a part of the Post Office Act of 1792, newspapers, which were deemed by the founding fathers as the most essential means of maintaining an educated citizenry, were permitted to be mailed at extremely low rates. Thanks to the affordability of mailing newspapers, the paper made up a bulk of all US mail being sent at the start of the 19th century. By the time the 1840s rolled around, 91 percent of white American adults were able to read. This impressive (and uncommon) literacy rate was attributed to the availability of newspapers. Newspapers, as you now know, were only readily available due to the passing of the act back in 1792 that made them so cheap to mail. Who knew the postal service played such a major role in American literacy?

Mailbox Near Me – Mailbox Facts

Mail Thieves Beware

In the modern day, it’s still considered a federal offense to steal or tamper with mail that isn’t yours, but back in the day, penalties were even more harsh for those who chose to steal mail. Think about this as you search mailbox near me. Because the US mail was the only official and safe way to send money throughout the US,punishment for mail thieves was strict and often resulted in the death penalty. This severe punishment wasn’t meant to invoke cruelty or reflect on the government’s overall view of punishment, but it was meant to speak of the importance of safe postal delivery. By deeming the act of stealing mail a crime that was punishable by death, the government quickly made a point on how mail should be viewed in a modern society. Congress reconsidered the death penalty for first time offenders in 1799, changing the punishment to public whipping and a prison sentence of up to 10 years. The death penalty remained in effect for second time offenders up until 1872. Who knew that stealing mail was once considered such a serious offense?

The Postmaster General Was Once Very Important

While the role of postmaster general has always held some esteem, it was once so highly regarded that the role used to put one in the succession for the presidency. President Jackson decided that the Postmaster General should be able to sit in on the president’s cabinet, thereby enforcing the idea that the Postmaster General was on the same level as the secretaries of war, treasury, and state. This also put the Postmaster General in contention to be the Commander in Chief should anything happen to the president and vice president. The Postmaster General remained a member of the president’s cabinet until 1971, when the role was finally removed. As you search mailbox near me, consider if it would still be a good idea to have the postmaster general on the president’s cabinet. Do you think the role is as esteemed as it once was? Are citizens as well informed on this role as they were in the past?