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Typed label "Sorting desk from Old Westminster Post Office Donor: John E. Long, Jr. "Sorting Desk, Westminster Post Office Gift of John E. Long, Jr., 1960 The delivery of mail to the recipient's door is a relatively recent innovation. Usually, the sender had to take a letter to the post office to mail it, and the recipient had to pick up the letter at their post office, unless they lived in one of a few large cities where a carrier would deliver it to the home address for an extra penny or two. Although postage stamps became available in 1847, mailers had the option of sending their letters and having the recipients pay the postage until 1855, when prepayment became compulsory. Previously, if the addressees refused to accept the letter, the Post Office's labor and delivery costs were never recovered. Street boxes for mail collection began to appear in large cities by 1858. In 1863, free city delivery was instituted in 49 of the country's largest cities. By 1890, 454 post office's were delivering mail to city residents. It was not until the turn of the century, however, that free delivery came to farmers and other rural residents." "
