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Rushville's United States Post Office
Virginia Benninghoff The history of Rushville township's postal service dates from Abraham Tolle, who held the first contract to deliver mail to Rushville. He owned four Troy coaches that were drawn by four horses each. These were used to deliver mail prior to 1841. This mode of transportation and horseback were the main ways for mail delivery at the time. From the 1930s through the 1960s trains helped to handle mail four times daily. The mail was handled by railway mail clerks. When railroad postal service was discontinued, trucks were used. Almost any building can be adapted to a post office. Rushville's post office started in one of two buildings on the town square on January 18, 1827. It was a log cabin on the corner lot of the north side of the square and housed the first post office north of the Illinois River. Hart Fellows was the first postmaster appointed there. Fellows also used the same building for his general store. From 1827 to 1922, a change of postmaster meant a change in the post office's location. Over a one-hundred-fifty-six-year period, the Rushville Post Office changed buildings twenty-six times. The present building, located on the town square's northeast corner lot, was first occupied on May 28, 1938. Operating a post office entails receipt and dispatch of mail. In order to do this, routes must be established. In 1901 two routes were organized for Rushville Township. The first covered Rushville to Littleton Township, and the second was responsible for parts of Bambridge Township, to either Woodstock or Buena Vista townships. Sources differ on the final destination. By about 1908 there was a completed county system. Twenty-four routes made up this system, but not all of them started in Schuyler County. Seven actually came from Rushville. Nearly every farmer in the county received mail daily. In the 1930s the number of rural routes originating at Rushville decreased to five. Presently there are four rural routes in Schuyler County. City routes in Rushville did not develop until 1923. It was only necessary to have two routes to cover the town. One covered the eastern part of Rushville and the other took care of the western end. There were two deliveries per day. Presently
there are three city routes and one daily delivery. The positions required to run the business have not changed much over the years. It has always needed a postmaster. Twenty-six postmasters have been appointed in Rushville. There have also been two acting postmasters. The carrier is the other main post office worker. In 1923 Meyer Kinnear was appointed rural carrier of route seven. His beginning salary was about $1,860 annually. Kinnear became well acquainted with his patrons and often stopped to chat. The motto was "Service With A Smile," and he and seven other carriers lived up to it. Today, Edward Coats runs the Rushville Post Office. He employs the postmaster relief, window workers, part-time "flexes," and seven carriers. Relief workers can take on the duties of the postmaster. Window workers are responsible for selling stamps, weighing packages, and various small jobs. They are also responsible for the mark-up table, where misplaced mail is forwarded. Part-time flexes can take over any job. Window worker jobs have changed much over the years. At one time they gave out food stamps. They used to do many things manually, but now an integrated retail terminal is used. Almost everything is computerized, and workers use scanners. They also accept credit cards. At different times the post office has sold everything from greeting cards to teddy bears. Phone cards are also sold there. The post office is definitely a business; since 1974 it has not been tax supported and must make a profit. The Rushville Post Office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to noon. A typical morning starts with the arrival of a truck at 6:30 a. m. at the loading deck, sometimes with four or five large containers of mail. Some of the mail is already sorted into trays with tags. The rest of it is in sacks and needs to be sorted. After it has been sorted into the different routes, that route's carrier must sort the mail into the different box numbers. Each box number has a slot that the mail goes into. Tubs of mail are sent out at night. Overall they have two days to deliver nonpreferential mail, but some things are exceptions and are picked up at 2:30 and 5:30 each afternoon. There are four rural route carriers and four city carriers. Three vehicles are provided for the town, but rurals carriers use their own vehicles. All together they cover three hundred fifty miles and serve almost nine hundred boxes daily. The current building has a unique appearance. The walls and floors are made of marble. In the foyer, on the west wall is a mural showing Hart Fellows in his post office and general store. On the opposite wall are the post office boxes that were replaced about ten years ago. Along the long north wall there are many windows, but only one is in use now. To get into the back you must go through the postmaster's office. Out of the public's view there are many different stations for the different route slots. At the very back is the loading deck. The Rushville Post Office is essential to the community. Not only does it serve the community well, but also is a big part of the town's history.— [From Bateman, Newton and Paul Selby, eds., Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois Schuyler County; student historian's interview with Janet Kays, Jan. 8, 2000; Schuyler County Illinois.]
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