Facing traditional freight rates that exceeded four times the value of decorative bricks from the Salt Lake Pressed Brick Company, Coltharp packaged approximately 15,000 bricks into 50-pound parcels to fit within regulatory limits. The resulting 37.5 to 40 tons of cargo overwhelmed workers at the Vernal post office, which was accustomed to processing just two tons of daily mail. The Uintah Railroad and regional postal staff strained significantly to clear the immense backlog. To permanently curb such logistical strain, the Post Office Department barred individuals from shipping more than 200 pounds of parcels per day to one recipient.
Key points
Discrepancies between direct-distance parcel rates and mountain freight costs allowed a b…: Discrepancies between direct-distance parcel rates and mountain freight costs allowed a businessman to ship 40 tons of building supplies.
The massive volume of packaged masonry severely strained the regional capacity of the Uin…: The massive volume of packaged masonry severely strained the regional capacity of the Uintah Railroad and local post offices.
Postal authorities permanently resolved the loophole by capping daily shipments between a…: Postal authorities permanently resolved the loophole by capping daily shipments between a single sender and recipient at 200 pounds.
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In the early days of America's Parcel Post system it seemed everything that could fit within the rules was fair game for delivery. Farmers sent crops, families sent food and household goods, and businesses soon discovered that the postal network could be an unexpectedly cheap alternative to traditional freight. But in Utah, one businessman took the idea much further and used the mail to ship thousands of bricks for an entire bank.
When the postal service was a shipping network
According to the Smithsonian National Postal Museum, on January 1, 1913, Parcel Post officially began, changing the way Americans could ship items. The service was particularly popular with rural families who had to haul goods into towns with express offices before they could be sent on. The new system linked packages straight to rural mailboxes, and it was nearly instantly popular. In the first half of the year, some 300 million parcels were processed. The weight limits increased quickly, from 11 pounds to 20 pounds, then eventually 50 pounds.
The service was not limited to normal household parcels. Eggs, butter,…
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