top of page

Early Postal Service: The 1800s (Pt 2)

Updated: 3 days ago

By the time of the War of 1812 with Britain, the post still arrived in Sandwich only once a week.


But with the growing population and the beginning of various small businesses on Cape Cod, by 1820 mail was delivered three times a week. [1] 


And with the burgeoning industry of Deming Jarves’ Boston and Sandwich Glass Works beginning in 1825, the demand for a more frequent postal service erupted. 


Beginning in 1830, Joseph Hall kept a small post office, general store, and tavern at 108 Old County Road in East Sandwich. He advertised his new tavern as “The Commodious House.” He guaranteed good entertainment!


In this 1898 photo by Delia Nye, we see her mother, Ruth Nye.
In this 1898 photo by Delia Nye, we see her mother, Ruth Nye.

 in comparison to the previous photo you can see how much the tree by the front door has grown.
 in comparison to the previous photo you can see how much the tree by the front door has grown.

Below are two photos of the home of Miss Sally Cozzens, which also served as the Spring Hill Post Office where Sally was postmistress. The three-quarter Cape was moved to this location from the Joseph Hall property (above), which was eventually divided up. The 379 Route 6A home was later owned by the Cullity family for 39 years, until 2000. 

ree
ree

In 1961 the Cullitys bought the structure shown below, also from the divided Joseph Hall property on Old County Road. It had previously been moved many times, and in 1962 it was moved to the area of Sandy Neck Road. Still owned by the Cullity family, from there it was moved once more to it current location at 379 Route 6A where it served as a well-known antique shop run by Rosanna Cullity [2]. Sadly now under different ownership, it is in a bad state of neglect.


ree


With the beginning of numerous post offices in town, including those in private homes, the position of postmaster, and later postmistress, was added to the rolls of possible paying jobs. By 1831 there were a number of postal agents in town. You will recognize many old Sandwich names among the following:

 

  • In West Sandwich, now Bourne, there was Benjamin Burgess.

  • In Sandwich Village there was William H. Fessenden.

  • As reported earlier, in East Sandwich there was Joseph Hall.   

  • In South Sandwich there was Lemuel Ewer.

  • In Pocasset, now Bourne, there was Hercules Weston.

  • In Monument, now Bourne, there was Elisha Perry. [3]


The post office became the center of life for the residents of Sandwich. If you were looking for a job, you applied at the local post office. If you wanted to catch up on the latest town news or gossip, you visited your post office. There was even a pecking order of where you had to stand when you wanted to hang around the local post office. Children were relegated to the fringes of the tight space.

 

In 1836 the Barnstable Patriot reported that an ad for a blacksmith and wheelwright told applicants to apply to the Sandwich Post Office but neglected to specify which one. [4]


[1] Russell A Lovell Jr., Sandwich, A Cape Cod Town. pp. 232-243.

[2] Rosanna and John Nye Cullity, A Sandwich Album. 1987.

[3] Lovell, p. 243.

[4] The Barnstable Patriot, November 30, 1836.


Note: The post office series was written for Facebook in lieu of The Sandwich Enterprise.

Kaethe Maguire is a member of the Friends of the Sandwich Town Archives, a dedicated, all-volunteer, 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to supporting and promoting the archives’ collections and the rich, diverse history of the town of Sandwich. 

Comments


bottom of page