If you live on a rural route these days, those holiday cards and Christmas letters have been arriving lately in your roadside mailbox courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service and a trusty carrier. But that was not always the case in Lucas County and elsewhere.
As the 19th century ended, mail was delivered in bulk by private contractors to countless post offices large, small and tiny scattered across the landscape. There were dozens in Lucas County ranging from Belinda and Oakley through Last Chance to Ola. The mail was sorted there and farmers made their way to the office nearest their homes to pick it up. Quite often, the "office" part of the operation was located behind a counter in a general store.
Congress approved legislation establishing postal service-funded rural free delivery (RFD) in 1893, but implementation was slow. Some private mail carriers and tiny-town postmasters objected, fearing they'd be put out of business, and many merchants were none too happy either. They were afraid farmers would come to town less often if mail were delivered to their doors.
The process began with a petition for a route from potential patrons --- and that required organization.
As a result, RFD did not arrive in Lucas County until 1900, as reported in The Chariton Herald of Oct. 12:
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Some time ago a petition for free mail delivery was circulated by the residents of English township. Through the efforts of Hon. W.P. Hepburn the petition was granted.
Monday, Government Inspector J. T. Boylan, accompanied by (Chariton) Postmaster L.F. Maple, John White and Carrier Geo. Brown inspected and approved the prospective mail route. The route is 26 miles long and covers considerable territory, more than 230 houses being in the district.
The mail will be supplied once a day to the 230 families and the carrier will also have for sale postage stamps, postal cards, stamped envelopes, etc., besides application blanks for money orders.
Mr. Boylan, after he had inspected the route, pronounced it the banner route of Iowa, as more families would be supplied for the amount of mileage than in any other district in the state. Service will be established as soon as the department can get to it.
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Mr. Brown began his appointed rounds in Lincoln and English townships on or about Nov. 1, 1900, and before long the push was on throughout the county.
The Herald of Jan. 4, 1901, reported that "The great success of rural free delivery route number one, through Lincoln and English townships, has stimulated the residents of other sections of the county to secure more routes that will come to their doors. The second route to be established in Lucas county will be through Whitebreast and Warren townships. The residents of this section have already laid out the route which they wish to establish, which is 26 miles long and will furnish a population of 208 households with free mail delivery each day. The route as mapped will start out of Chariton, running south to Freedom, then west to within two miles of Derby, turning north and running to the old Mormon Trace road at the old Taylor brick yard, and thence back to Chariton. The petition has been circulated and signed by about 80 more residents than is required from the establishment of a rural delivery, and sent to Mr. Hepburn, who personally presented it to the department and says that as soon as they can catch up in their work which is about three months behind that an inspector will be sent out to look over the route and an order made for its establishment."
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It took most of the year to gain approval for the southwesterly route and during that time, petitioners for a southeasterly route jumped aboard. The Herald of Dec. 12, 1901, reported as follows:
"Instructions from the post office department changed the previous plans concerning Rural Routes Nos. 2 and 3, which were not scheduled to start until January 1. The routes will now start next Monday with Will C. Fuller as carrier for Route No. 2, which runs south and west and W.E. Badger for Route No. 3, which runs east and south. All patrons of the new routes should be careful to have all their mail sent with the number of their rural route on it as this willl prevent much trouble and delay in transmission."
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In addition, The Chariton Democrat reported in its edition of Dec. 12, 1901, that "Rural free delivery service will be established February 1, 1902, at Russell, this county. The length of the route will be 25 and a quarter miles and the population served, 530. The carrier will be John H. Willitt."
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