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Rural Mail Delivery InauguratedRural mail delivery was duly inaugurated on April 1, 1902. With their brand new United States Mail wagons, resplendent in the national colors, the two carriers, H. D. Upton and J. R. Brown, were the observed of all observers. Both left the office shortly after 9:30 a.m. Quite a number of spectators had assembled to see them off, and the same interest was manifested all along the routes. The day was fair and the roads were in comparatively good condition, so they made their round-trip in good time. J. R. Brown, carrier of rout 1, returned to the office at 3:08 p.m., having delivered 17 letters, 61 newspapers, 6 postal cards, 41 circulars and 13 packages, making a total of 138 pieces. He collected 1 application for a money order, 34 letters and 4 postal cards, total collected 39, handled 177. H. D. Upton, carrier for route 2, returned to the office at 3:25 p.m. having delivered 9 letters, 4 postal cards, 80 papers, 3 circulars, and 4 packages, making a total of 100 pieces. He collected 16 letters, 8 postal cards, a total of 24, total pieces handled 124. Quite a number of patrons have not put up their boxes and a number are nailed to the fence and will have to be placed where the carrier can reach them without getting out of the wagon. - Roanoke Call, 1902 - |
The post office at Roanoke was opened on March 22, 1858. It was later closed for six years, the reason unknown. The early records of the office were burned some years ago and the information in the National Archives does not explain the closing. The following is a list of the Postmasters and the year of their appointment:
| Benjamin F. Sanborn - March 22, 1858 Jacob Banta - January 5, 1863 Tobias J. Reiff - April 3, 1866 Oliver G. Cobley - December 20, 1866 David T. Fauber - January 18, 1867 Office closed December 30, 1867 Office reopened January 9, 1873 Frank C. Piper - January 9, 1873 Joshua F. Wheelwright - October 1, 1873 William P. Moore - October 19, 1885 |
J. F. Wheelwright - March 29, 1889 William P. Moore - September 1, 1893 Joseph R. Claudin - November 21, 1895 Cyrus F. Brown - November 3, 1897 Benjamin W. Belsley - December 4, 1906 Jacob Sand - October 30, 1913 Richard Full - May 11, 1922 Jacob Sand - 1934 to 1947 Andrew Zimmerman - 1947 to 1968 William Fehr - July 26, 1968 - appointed 1971 |
The first known location of the Post Office was in Frank Piper's general store east of the creek bridge. The earlier postmasters most likely operated from their homes. J. F. Wheelwright distributed mail in his drug store on the west side of Main Street. Sanborn lived in the vicinity of Besser's present plant, and Fauber lived on east Broad Street between a bakery and tailor shop. Soon after William Moore's second term began, the office occupied a corner in the west side of Main Street. It contained only a wooden rack to keep the mail in order. The fire which destroyed that block forced the evacuation of the rack into the street at two o'clock in the morning of October 23, 1893. The next morning Postmaster Moore sent to Eureka for stamps and was back in business in the hardware store by noon.
Other locations of the Post Office were the two west rooms of the Kennell building on Husseman Street, trading places with the Call Printing Office at two intervals, and in the Claudin Building on the northeast corner of the square.
The old Blottiaux Butchershop was torn down and the present office built on the site in 1955 and enlarged in 1967. Mail is now handled by trucks on a contract basis.
After rural mail delivery began in April, 1902, some of the carriers were:
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Harm Fritzen Herb Darnell - rode motorcycle Leo Pruvost - quit & went to work on Santa Fe mail train Walter Salathe Frank Kirk Henry Priller Clarence Beer - transferred to Fairbury Frank Fauber - Route 2 Carl Yeck - Route 1 Robert Ruble - Route 2 Roanoke & Benson Ralph Davis - Route 1 Roanoke & Secor Carl Sauder - substitute Lawrence Rocke - substitute |
Early carriers made their rounds in a kind of closed buggy similar to a "klondike" pulled by one horse. It had slots around the inside for holding the letters, two sliding doors, and a glassed front with two holes in the dash board for the reins for the horse. Rural housewives often gave the carrier a list of groceries or other items from the store which he would bring out the next day. There was no charge for such service. Originally there were two routes out of Roanoke, but in recent years they have been rearranged.
Postal jobs are now under civil service classification in contrast to political patronage in former years. Andrew Zimmerman (1947-1968) was the first postmaster covered by civil service.
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Post Office Building SiteThe previous building had stood idle a number of years after Jess Leman closed his cream station. Joe Hoffman opened it in 1919. Morris Paluska bought poultry there after Provost and Riviere closed out their grocery store. This same building housed Blottiaux' butcher shop, Sam Zimmerman's in 1908 and, before that, Andrew Rapp, beginning in 1892. Burkholder's also conducted a store there at one time. |
