National Thank a Mailman Day, celebrated on February 4, is a day set aside to give recognition to mailmen across the United States. For six days of the week and 52 weeks a year, mailmen work hard to deliver letters and documents that are important to you.
And they do all that they can to ensure your mail reaches you on time. Imagine driving around town and stopping by hundreds of houses every day. It’s not a piece of cake, is it? Well, this is exactly why your mailman needs to be honored at this time of year. So make sure to thank your mailman if he drops by today!
Mail delivery is a service that has existed for centuries and was most essential when there were no phones or internet. Men would travel for days to send a letter across. This system started in Mesopotamia, around the time when people started writing on clay tabs.
However, the state did not appoint a courier system till around 2400 B.C. in ancient Egypt. During this time, the Pharaohs would often send messages through individuals designated as couriers. A similar format was used in ancient China between 306 B.C. and 221 A.D. to administer taxes.
And at that time there were no envelopes. Envelopes were developed around the 2nd century B.C. and were made of cloth or animal skin.
The modern mail system as we know it did not come into being until 1653. It was first set up in Paris by Jean-Jacques Renouard de Villayer, who put up mailboxes and delivered the letters that were placed inside.
This delivery system was set up as a business idea by Villayer.
The postal office in the U.S started in 1775 and was a government agency that delivered mail to and from the citizens of the country.
Mail delivery was also very important during the time of World War I and II since letters were the sole medium of communication with soldiers who had gone to war. Today, the post office is used to send letters and packages to people residing in different parts of the world.
