Finding the Location of a Post Office
This is a frequently asked question abot discontinued post office. It can be surprising difficuly to get a good answer.
There are some state postal history books that include some location iformation. In most all cases, this is the approxiamte location of the office on a map. These works are:
Historical Atlas of Alabama Volume 1 Historical Locations by County by Remington & Kallson. Includes maps and coordinates, but is not comprehensive.
Postmarks of Territorial Alaska by Richard W. Helbock. Has text description of location.
Arizona Post Offices by Alan H. Patera and John S. Gallagher. Map, coordinates and description.
History of California Post Offices by H.E. Salley. Map and description.
Kentucky Place Names by Robert M. Rennick. Has description but is not comprehensive.
Louisiana Post Offices by John J. Germann. Map with railroads noted.
The Post Offices of Maine A Rarity Guide by The Maine Philatelic Society. Has the name of the town where the office is located.
The Postal Office of Massachusetts by Merrolla and Crowther. Has the name of the town where the office is located.
Michigan Post Offices 1805-1986 by David M. Ellis. Map.
Montana Post Offices and Postmasters by Dennis J. Lutz. Map
Nebraska Post Offices And Postmasters byAlton L. Kraft. Description
North Dakota Place Names by Douglas Wick. coordinates on some offices.
Oregon Post Offices by Richard W. Helbock. Map and description.
The Post Offices of Rhode Island by John S. Gallagher. Map.
South Carolina Postal History and Illustrated Catalog of Postmarks 1760-1860 by Harvey Teal and Bob Stets. Map of offices established up to 1860.
South Dakota Post Offices by Alan Patera, John Gallagher and Ken Stach. Map and coordinates.
Texas Post Offices By County by John Germann and Myron Jantzen. Map.
Washington Post Offices by Tim Boardman and Richard W. Helbock. Map.
Wyoming Post Offices 1850-1980 by John S. Gallagher and Alan H. Patera. Map and desription.
The book list is not comprehensive. The may be some location information in the other books noted for each state. You can find my bibliography by going to this page and clicking on the state of interest.
The source for the location data is in theThe National Archives. It has Post Office Department Records of Site Locations, 1837-1950. In most cases the location is given in relative terms to what the first postmaster thought was important. You will rarely get a street address, especially on the 19th century. I have never heard of someone who is not disappointed by the information on these reports. For the details, please click here. The information is on microfilm. Also for these you can buy the film or try to get help from a librarian who can ask to get te film on interlibrary loan.
Good luck.
