Blast from the Past: Today, My Heart Belongs to . . . the Letter Carrier

[I originally penned this post 10 years ago around Valentine’s Day, but I thought it was time to bring it to the forefront. Happy Valentine’s Day!]

Valentine’s Day was eagerly awaited by many a young nineteenth century lass and lad in England. Thousands of Valentine letters were exchanged in London alone. In fact, the 1835 Post-Master General’s report cites an additional 50,000 or 60,000 pieces of mail through the London Twopenny Post around Valentine’s Day. The hundred or so letter carriers in London had to be given additional money for refreshments just to see them through their arduous work. In a bigger city, they might make deliveries as many as six times a day!

However, even with their help, figuring out how to get your Valentine from your fingers to your true love wasn’t for the faint of heart. You could hand it to the postman, if you caught him on one of his rounds, or you could take it to the Post Office near you, which could be at a shop or an inn if you were in a smaller town or village. Later in the century, post boxes appeared to collect letters in certain areas. Some villages didn’t even have post offices or boxes, requiring you to walk miles to post a letter or to take the chance of paying a private firm to deliver your message for you. Many such firms went bankrupt before letters were even delivered.

Then too, each sheet of paper cost money to send, to be paid by the person who received it. While England was at war with France, postage costs kept increasing. Postage was also higher the farther the letter had to travel. As you can imagine, the cost put a burden on the average working man or lady, not to mention the underemployed teen.

So, letter writers got creative. Instead of using more than one sheet, they wrote on both sides of the one, vertically, horizontally, and then kitty corner! Such cross writing was notoriously difficult to read, particularly squinting over candlelight. Then too, some friends or family who lived far apart arranged a code. If a letter arrived from the friend with your name misspelled or perhaps the address lettered wrong, why you knew that the friend was well and you could refuse to pay for the letter. There were also tales of people writing with milk along the margins of newspapers, which were free to mail, so that a friend could read the note over the heat of a flame. 

Letters that were refused ended up in the Dead Letter Office. I can imagine it looking something like the Library of Congress in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, although this is what one looked like in America in the early twentieth century. (Tires?  Really?) Post Office employees often had to open the mail to determine how else it might find it rightful home. But in the early nineteenth century in England, Post Office employees were allowed to open and read your mail under other circumstances too, such as if you were suspected of being a traitor to England (“Dear Napoleon—I love you!”), evading Customs (“Dear Aunt Charlotte, that case of Brussels lace is safely stored in the cave under Peasbury Abbey.”), or involved in a robbery (“Dear Susan, I am delighted to relate that I was able to make away with that diamond ring you always wanted.”). If you were in jail for bankruptcy, the Post Office even sent all your mail to the solicitor in charge of prosecuting the case!

I’m just thankful for mail carriers today. They deliver author copies, fan mail, royalty statements, and all manner of things designed to make a writer’s heart go pitter-patter, even when it isn’t Valentine’s Day.

A Lost Letter That Launched a Book by Guest Blogger Rachel Fordham

Lost mail? Is that story worthy? I asked myself those same questions after touring an old post office and first hearing about lost mail and how it was sent to the Dead Letter Office. I didn’t have to ask myself these questions very long. Of course, lost mail was story worthy! This was only confirmed to me when I began researching the postal system and its history.

One of the hard parts of being a historical writer is finding mounds and mounds of delicious historical details and only being able to utilize a small portion of it in your story. The first third of Yours Truly, Thomas was once longer but with each edit the start was trimmed downed in order to get our lead characters together sooner. As a result, I had to cut out some fascinating pieces of trivia. Here are just a few. For more info, I highly recommend the Smithsonian’s archives. They have an entire postal museum, and if you’re like me the vast amount of info will keep you scrolling and reading for hours.

Originally there was only one dead letter office. It was located in Washington, DC. The employees were paid decent wages for the time. Men made more than women. More women worked there than men. There are different theories for why that is. Some say it’s because the women were more trustworthy and wouldn’t steal; others said it was because of the pay difference.

These postal workers were essentially detectives. They would start with the outside of the envelope and look for clues. Often words were just spelled wrong, especially if the writer was an immigrant and was not an English speaker. If they couldn’t “solve” the mystery based off the outside they were the only postal workers that had permission to open mail. They’d scour the inside contents for clues. The amazing thing to me is that they could rehome these letters with no internet to search for answers!

Often the mail contained boring pieces: bills, taxes, legal documents…but sometimes there were live animals, rare valuables, and family secrets. Items that couldn’t be rerouted were sold at auction after a certain amount of time, and money was put in the national treasury.

When I was dating my husband, we were apart for a couple months. We wrote old-fashioned letters to each other. We’d pour our hearts into those letters and send them off assuming they’d make their way across the many miles that separated us. They always made it, but it’s not so hard to believe that sometimes even love letters were lost. This idea grew in my mind until I’d create my character Penny. She works at the dead letter office, and some letters become personal to her. Thomas’s letter was one of those. Opening that letter changed her life.

Has a letter ever changed your life? Could it?

Welcome to Rachel Fordham and Yours Truly, Thomas!

We are delighted to welcome to Nineteen Teen the talented author Rachel Fordham! Regina had the delight of reading her sophomore novel, Yours Truly, Thomas. What a sweet, tender love story, and one very likely to end up on many a reader’s keeper shelf. Here’s a little about the book:

For three years, Penny Ercanbeck has been opening other people’s mail.

Dead ends are a reality for clerks at the dead letter office, and she dreams of something more--a bit of intrigue, perhaps a taste of romance. When she comes across a letter from a brokenhearted man to his one true love, it becomes her mission to place this lost letter into the hands of its intended recipient.

But when Penny's undertaking leads her to the intriguing man who touched her soul with his words, everything grows more complicated. She wants to find the rightful owner of the letter, and yet . . . she finds herself caring--perhaps too much--for the one who wrote it.

Please welcome Rachel and come back Friday to learn more about the intriguing setting of her novel.

Nineteen Teen: So happy to have you, Rachel! Your heroine, Penny, has an interesting vocation. How did you decide on that?

Rachel: I was touring an old post office in the Midwest, and the guide mentioned that the mail that wasn’t claimed or they couldn’t decipher was sent to the dead letter office. I immediately started googling the dead letter office and just knew I needed to write a story about it.

19T: If you could write a letter to anyone—past, present, or future—who would it be and why?

Rachel: This is a really hard question….hmmm….

As much as I’d like to write to my ancestors and ask them all sorts of things about the past, I think I’ll pick the future. I’d like to write my children and their children all the bits of wisdom I’m learning about life. We’ve gone through some deep waters as a family. For example, this picture was taken around the time our then four year old was diagnosed with Adrenoleukodystrophy. We cried and struggled through that difficult time, but we also learned and grew. I’d love knowing that when they faced their own struggles they had my words to help them in addition to God’s help and grace.  

19T: What research did you want to put in the book, but couldn’t fit in?

Rachel: There were lots of funny items that came through the dead letter office and interesting facts about how much postal workers made. Since Penny works at the postal office only for the first part of the book it was really hard to fit in as much detail as I would have liked. I think a whole series could be written inspired by this important place.

19T: This is your readers’ second visit to Azure Springs. What’s special about the little town in Iowa?

Rachel: I’ve been able to read a lot of reviews for The Hope of Azure Springs and have gotten several emails from readers who have discussed the town. I think the general consensus is that Azure Springs is the type of town we’d all like to live in. It’s not a perfect place, but it’s a place for second chances, where the eccentric cast of characters is willing to rally around one another. Connecting with people is so important to life and happiness, and Azure Springs is a place you feel like you could walk into and make real friends. 

19T: You have your own special spot to live. How did that come about?

I am lucky enough to live on a small island in Washington State. We have a bridge, so we don’t have to boat everywhere we go (I’ve gotten that question before!). I grew up in Washington, so when we were  done with school and looking for places to settle we started our search by looking near my family. We ended up finding a job a couple hours away and couldn’t be happier. Our house was an easy pick! We have a big family, and there are very few big family homes where we live so when one came up it was a done deal. I’ve always thought that great houses need great names, so we named our house on the island Green Haven. Partly because it’s green and beautiful, but mostly because green can mean young and we want our home and land to be a haven for children!

19T: What’s next for your writing endeavors?

Rachel: My 2020 release is about a teacher in the Dakotas that left her big city life six years ago but no one knows for sure why. I actually wrote this story a couple years ago and have had a great time revisiting and editing it and even though it’s a year away I’m so anxious for readers to dive into this one!

19T: Popcorn Round!

Coffee or tea? I’m so boring! I’m a water girl through and through.

Salty or sweet snacks? Sweet! I keep trying to kick the habit, but I love sugar.

Bustle or hoop skirt? Hmmmm….I think if I was to get all dressed up and travel back in time I’d have fun wearing a hoop skirt.

Buggy or horseback? Horseback!

Cat, dog, chicken, or bunny? We have a couple outside cats and chickens.

19T: Where can readers connect with you?

Rachel: My website is usually up to date and has a link to sign up for my newsletter. I’m also on Facebook and on Instagram @rachel_fordham.

Dead Letters and Live Authors

Back in February 2013, I wrote a post that included information about the Dead Letter Office. Little did I know that I was one day to read a fabulous book about a heroine who works in that office. Please come back next week to hear more about Rachel Thomas and her new book, Yours Truly, Thomas. In the meantime, here’s a little more about England’s Dead Letter Office.

During the Regency period, letters were paid for by the recipient, as we’ve mentioned, so sometimes a recipient simply refused to accept the letter. There are stories about plain girls refusing valentines that insulted them, women refusing letters from their sisters because they could tell by the writing on the outside that all was well. Then too, someone might refuse a letter if it was clearly not theirs.

Those letters ended up in the Dead Letter Office. Post Office employees would try to determine the rightful owner and see the letter on its way.

But in the early nineteenth century in England, Post Office employees were allowed to open and read your mail under other circumstances too:

• Perhaps you were suspected of being a traitor to England (“Dear Napoleon—I love you! Please come visit soon. I'll leave the candle burning.”).
• Perhaps you were rumored to be evading Customs (“Dear Aunt Charlotte, that case of French lace is safely stored in the cave under Peasbury Chapel. Do avoid the Excise men when going to fetch it, and give my thanks for the rector for allowing the use of the premises.”)
• Perhaps you were involved in a robbery (“Dear Susan, I am delighted to relate that I was able to make away with that diamond ring you always wanted. Her ladyship only protested a little when I pulled it off her finger.”).
• If you were in jail for bankruptcy, the Post Office even sent all your mail to the solicitor in charge of prosecuting the case!

I think if the Post Office was monitoring my mail today, the employees might get an inkling as to what I do for a living, what with author copies, contracts, and business cards coming in. And all those lovely reference books. 😊

Looking forward to visiting with Rachel Fordham next week! I hope you are too.