CHAPTER FOUR

POSTAL SERVICE

A POst office was Opened in Charlottetown in the early 1800‘s and until 1827 it was the only institution Of the kind on the Island. Letters remained in the Post Office until called for. On January 8, 1825 there appeared in the PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND GAZETTE the following notice: List of letters in the Post Office at Charlottetown. If not called for will be returned to Halifax. Under Bideford Shipyard was the name Thomas Gorman.

In the 1861 Census for Lot 12, John Hopgood was listed as Postmaster. A Post Office was listed in HUTCHINSON’S PEI DIRECTORY in 1864—Lot 12, John Wallace, Postmaster. In 1874, there was a Post Office for Ellerslie, with William Hayes, Postmaster. Other postmasters at Ellerslie have been Philip Williams, Raymond Gillis and presently Eileen Rafferty. At one time there was a Post Office in Bideford at which Albert Williams was Postmaster. A letter from the Post Office Inspector in Charlottetown dated January, 1924, mentioned the Post Office at Ellerslie with Philip Williams, Postmaster, and one in Bideford with only six householders receiving mail there. It was suggested in the letter that the office in Bideford could be easily dispensed with and allow the residents to put in an application for rural mail delivery. Philip Williams was delivering mail on the Ellerslie Rural Route at that time.

Others who delivered the mail on Ellerslie Rural Route 1 were: Gordon Millar, Layton Millar, Byron Hutchinson, James Bridges, Mrs. Annie Bridges, Stanley Bridges, Mrs. Linda Bridges and Thomas Boyle. Mail car— riers for Ellerslie Rural Route 2 were Fred Williams, William Murphy, Hazel and Jim Murphy, Warren Gillis and William Gillis.

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