Tales and Items of Interest

THE POST OFFICE

The first mail that was carried on Prince Edward Island was in 1792 when Major Robert Gray, secretary to Lieutenant Governor Edmund Fanning, set out from Charlottetown heading overland to Murray Harbour to rendezvous with the ship Assistance to sail with her carrying mail for Colonial Authorities in London.

Postal communication with Great Britain and the neighboring Colonies was essential for the British Colony of St. John’s (later Prince Edward Island). Not only did it permit the exchange of government correspondence, but it provided colonists with a flow of newspapers and letters to combat the sense of isolation that afflicted a small island surrounded by ice for many months each year.

Mail service to and from Prince Edward Island was not established on a regular basis until well into the 19th century. Individual letters might be sent directly on vessels trading with the Island, but in general mail from Britain was enclosed with mail to Nova Scotia and upon its arrival in Halifax, the Island was notified. It was the Islands responsibility to send someone to retrieve it.

In 1827, 50 years after the first winter mail crossing, the Island government addressed the question of providing mail service within the Colony. Before that date the internal postal service was quite straightforward; all mail came to Charlottetown and anyone expecting a letter came there to get it, alerted by word of mouth or by the local newspaper which published from time to time lists of letters waiting to be picked up.

On July 17, 1827 the Prince Edward Island Register carried Postmaster Richard Chappell’s announcement establishing the exact routes, along with the areas they were to serve and the locations of various post offices. The routes were the Western Route, Eastern Route, and Southeastern Route.

The mails for each route were to leave Charlottetown on Wednesday at 12 o’clock noon with Southeastern and Western carries returning to town by Friday at noon and the Eastern carrier at noon on Saturday. Two pence postage was charged on each single letter and a halfpenny on a newspaper.

As the Colony continued to grow, the internal postal service grew with it. Post offices opened

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and closed as routes changed and settlements spread. By 1855 there were upwards of 48 post offices, not including Charlottetown.

By April 1, 1878 Marshfield had established a post office which was in the post master’s or mistress’s house and remained in service till October 15, 1912 when it was closed due to rural delivery from Charlottetown.

Marshfield Post Masters and Mistresses: Miss Isabella Robertson, April 1, 1878 to June 11,

1895 (death). Mrs. Janet Morson, July 1, 1895 to Aug. 30, 1901

(resignation).

Mr. William Miller, Nov. 1, 1901 to Dec. 24, 1908 (death).

Mrs. Emily Miller, Jan 29, 1909 to April 17, 1909 (resignation).

Mr. John McFarlane, May 1, 1909 to Oct. 15, 1912 (post office closure).

Submitted by Linda Harding

SOURCE Information taken from Carrying the Mails 1763-1861,

by Alison Ann Heckbert. The Island Magazine No. 27, pages 22-30. Notes from Sheila Fobes.

THE BEGINNING OF RURAL ROUTE DELIVERY

The Post Master General Reports from 1912 to 1917 are of interest. They state that prior to rural delivery, J.W, Ferguson was the contractor for hauling the mail from Charlottetown to the Marshfield Post Office. He became the first contractor for rural delivery, 6 times a week, in this area. In 1912-1913 (year end was March 31) the route was 10 miles; 1913-1914, 22 miles; by 1916, 24 miles. In 1916-1917 the route was named Rural

Route 3. Courtesy of Douglas Murray