Cass County, Indiana - Chapter 35: Logansport Postopfice, 1913

Before the organization of Cass county in 1829, all the territory now composing this county was attached to Carroll county and the first postoffice in this region was Eel River, Carroll county, established in 1820, with James Athy, postmaster, appointed March 20, 1820; succeeded by Hugh B. McKeen, January 9, 1828. The following spring Logansport was laid out and named and the name of the postoffice was chimged to Logansport and the following persons have occupied the position of postmaster with the date of appointment:

In the year 1856 the Logansport office was^ raised to the third class, or what is known as a presidential office, the postmaster being appointed by the president and confirmed by the United States senate, and Samuel A. Hall was the first Logansport postmaster to be thus appointed, as prior to that time it was a fourth class office (the receipts being less tiian one thousand dollars) and the postmaster general made the appointment. Since that time the postoffice has been located at the following places: At 416 'Broadway, then at 317 Pearl street; 301-3 Third street and 216 Market street, where it remained until it was moved to its present quarters owned by the government In 1902 Hon. Geo. W. Steele, then congressman from this, the eleventh district, secured an appropriation of $75,000 for the erection of a government building in Logansport. Steps were at once taken to secure a location and erect a building. The present site located on the southeast comer of Sixth and Market streets and extending south to Erie avenue, was bought of Geo. C. Taber for $15,000 and the remainder of the appropriation was used to erect the present massive brick and stone building, which was completed ready for occupancy on August 5, 1905; W. W. Moss being then postmaster. The building is only one story in height, but has a high, airy and well lighted basement under the entire structure, and affords ample accommodations for the postal officials.

The first rural mail route in the county was established in 1898, under the administration of J. Z. Powell and since then the whole of Cass county has been systematically covered by rural mail delivery, there being at this time 34 different routes within the county, 12 of which radiate out from the Logansport office, they being Nos. 1 to 11 inclusive and No. 34.

livery, many fourth class postoffices with their star route mail service have been discontinued and only the offices mentioned above, together with the Young America office, now remain in the county and the latter is served by a rural route carrier from Galveston. - The rural mail service has been not only a great convenience to the farmer, but has also proved to be a great educator, by putting him in daily touch with the outside world and the daily newspaper has very largely supplanted the weekly or monthly papers formerly so generally read by our rural population.

In the year 1910 the receipts of the Logansport office ran above $40,000, thus bringing it within the first class grade. The office now employs 13 clerks, 15 regular city carriers, 12 rural carriers, to which add the substitutes, specials and janitors, making a total force of 45 employees in the office besides 25 railway -postal clerks that are paid from the Logansport office.

It may be of local historical interest to name all the former postoffices located within the county and served by star-route service, all of which are abandoned and better service given by the daily rural mail delivery.

Adamsboro, Anoka, JBig Indian, Curveton, Crittenden, Deacon, Dow, Georgetown, formerly called Amsterdam ; Fords Crossing, Meta, Montez, Pine, Dego, Twin Comers, Pitch, Gebhart, Spring Creek. The latter was kept by Joseph Rohrer in a log cabin on his farm in Clay township, about 1850, and was on the Perrysburg star route, the mail at that time was carried on horseback by Stephen Conrad.

The Twin Corner postoffice was located five and a half miles north of Logansport, on the Michigan road. It received its name from the fact that a pair of twins was bom into the families of Henry Bamett and Ira Tilton, who lived on opposite corners of the road. This office flourished during the Civil war, but when the twins were large enough to walk, they walked oflf with the postoffice and it has never been found or reestablished.

A Postal Savings Bank was established in the Logansport office October 21, 1911, and the total deposits for the first year amounted to $21,- 324.00, on which the depositors drew two per cent and if converted into government bonds, which the depositors have the privilege of doing, they draw two and one-half per cent interest. As yet the postal savings deposits is in the experimental stage, but the indications are that it will become more popular as time progresses and the people become familiar with its workings.

Postage stamps were first used in the United States in 1847. Prior to that time the postmaster at the mailing office wro^e on the corner of the envelope or paper, paid so much, giving the amount.

Envelopes were not invented until in the fifties and it is interesting? to scan old letters which were written on one side of the paper and then folded neatly in the shape of an envelope, and much tact was required to make the missive into a neat and handsome appearing packet. Official instructions from the postoffice department and other government business were all thus folded, which may seem odd to this progressive age.