Before Postage Stamps Before the Post Office Department issued its first postage stamps in 1847, letters were taken to a Post Office, where the postmaster would note the postage in the upper right corner. The postage rate was based on the number of sheets in the letter and the distance it ...
The USPS officially began operations on July 1, 1971, “Postal Service Day.” To learn about the nationwide celebrations that commemorated the transformation of the U.S. Post Office Department into the U.S. Postal Service, see our 6-page paper.PDF...