Railway mail service library
Encyclopedia
The Railway Mail Service (RMS) Library is a major collection of materials pertaining to en route distribution history. Incorporated in May 2003, it can assist researchers interested in Railway Mail Service
, route agent, Seapost
, Railway Post Office
(RPO), and Highway Post Office
(HPO) history. The collection has many unique, original-source documents that provide answers to questions dealing with the transportation and distribution of USA Mail between 1862 and 1977, as well as other countries during the 19th century and 20th century.
to Virginia
and renamed the "Railway Mail Service Library."
Since 1982, several major additions have been made to the collection. These include the Edwin Bergman scheme and schedule collection, Lloyd Jackson's, John Kay's, Lawrence Kruse's, Ed Maloney's, and Roy Schmidt's postal artifacts, Carm Cosentino's Transfer Office covers, Charles Scott's Fifth Division RMS records, worldwide postal emblems assembled by Len Cohen, James Mundy's postal locks, Lt. Col (ret) A. B. "Chip" Komoroske's railroad books, H. W. "Red" Reed's post office route maps, John McClelland's 1905 to 1949 bound issues of THE RAILWAY POST OFFICE, as well as Paul Nagle's set of the POSTAL TRANSPORT JOURNAL between 1950 and 1959. A multitude of other historically-significant resources have been acquired from many former railway and highway postal clerks.
, railroad station. Built in 1913 and in service on the Norfolk and Western Railway
for more than four decades, it was used for the town post office during the 1970s. Inside the 24 by 46 feet freight room are 20 filing cabinets and more than 500 feet of shelving. Artifact displays will be presented in the former baggage and waiting rooms after 2005.
Railway Mail Service
The United States Postal Service's Railway Mail Service was a significant mail transportation service in the US during the time period from the mid-19th century until the mid-20th century. The RMS, or its successor the Postal Transportation Service , carried the vast majority of letters and...
, route agent, Seapost
Seapost Service
A Seapost was a mail compartment aboard an ocean-going vessel in which international exchange mail was distributed. The first USA service of this type was the U.S.-German Seapost, which began operating in 1891 on the S.S. Havel North German Lloyd Line. This service rapidly expanded with routes to...
, Railway Post Office
Railway post office
In the United States a railway post office, commonly abbreviated as RPO, was a railroad car that was normally operated in passenger service as a means to sort mail en route, in order to speed delivery. The RPO was staffed by highly trained Railway Mail Service postal clerks, and was off-limits to...
(RPO), and Highway Post Office
Highway Post Office
Due to the continual withdrawal of so many Railway Post Office trains, the Post Office Department decided to experiment with the distribution of mail on large buses, equipped somewhat like RPO cars. On February 10, 1941, experimental service started on the Washington, DC & Harrisonburg, Virginia...
(HPO) history. The collection has many unique, original-source documents that provide answers to questions dealing with the transportation and distribution of USA Mail between 1862 and 1977, as well as other countries during the 19th century and 20th century.
History
The R.M.S. Library has grown from the AmeRPO ("American RPO") Society Library established in the early 1950s by Bryant Alden Long, co-author of the superb book on the subject, MAIL BY RAIL. After a period of stagnation it was acquired by Hershel Rankin, who renamed it the R.M.S. Library. When he was 80 years old and no longer able to handle research requests, Dr. Frank R. Scheer purchased the collection. Over a two-year period, the collection was moved from FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
to Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and renamed the "Railway Mail Service Library."
The collection
The RMS Library has every major book published about the Railway Mail Service/Postal Transportation Service (RMS/PTS). It also has many periodical articles written about en route distribution, and continually seeks ones that are not represented. There are six types of original-source documentation in the collection, however. These are:- photographs of HPO and RPO vehicles
- THE RAILWAY POST OFFICE and POSTAL TRANSPORT JOURNAL issues between 1905 and 1959
- oral recollections of former clerks on audio and video tapes, as well as movies about the RMS/PTS
- general orders describing weekly changes within several divisions
- general- and standpoint-schemes of mail distribution
- schedules of mail trains/routes. Schemes and schedules are particularly helpful for understanding how the network of mail transportation and distribution activities operated, as well as when routes began, ended, or underwent significant changes.
Since 1982, several major additions have been made to the collection. These include the Edwin Bergman scheme and schedule collection, Lloyd Jackson's, John Kay's, Lawrence Kruse's, Ed Maloney's, and Roy Schmidt's postal artifacts, Carm Cosentino's Transfer Office covers, Charles Scott's Fifth Division RMS records, worldwide postal emblems assembled by Len Cohen, James Mundy's postal locks, Lt. Col (ret) A. B. "Chip" Komoroske's railroad books, H. W. "Red" Reed's post office route maps, John McClelland's 1905 to 1949 bound issues of THE RAILWAY POST OFFICE, as well as Paul Nagle's set of the POSTAL TRANSPORT JOURNAL between 1950 and 1959. A multitude of other historically-significant resources have been acquired from many former railway and highway postal clerks.
Activities
As with most archival libraries, the principal activities are assisting research inquiries, organizing and filing the collection, as well as preservation of materials. The largest artifact in the collection is the building that became the Library's home on October 16, 2003: the Boyce, VirginiaBoyce, Virginia
Boyce is a town in Clarke County, Virginia, United States. The population was 426 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Boyce is located at ....
, railroad station. Built in 1913 and in service on the Norfolk and Western Railway
Norfolk and Western Railway
The Norfolk and Western Railway , a US class I railroad, was formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. It had headquarters in Roanoke, Virginia for most of its 150 year existence....
for more than four decades, it was used for the town post office during the 1970s. Inside the 24 by 46 feet freight room are 20 filing cabinets and more than 500 feet of shelving. Artifact displays will be presented in the former baggage and waiting rooms after 2005.