The Pelham Post Office Had To Move in 1922

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The history of a community's postal facilities typically sheds interesting light on the community's overall history.  The little Town of Pelham is no exception.  Indeed, Historic Pelham has documented a great deal about the establishment and evolution of local postal facilities in the Pelhams.  See, e.g.:

Fri., Sep. 15, 2017:  Pelhamites Wanted Free Home Mail Delivery in 1909.

Fri., Dec. 02, 2016:  More on Famed Pelhamville Druggist and Postmaster Seth T. Lyman and the Building he Built.

Mon., May 16, 2016:  Fatal Fire in 1902 at One Fifth Avenue Burned Down the Post Office and Pharmacy. 

Thu., Nov. 19, 2015:  Scandal Enveloped Pelham in 1898 as the Postmistress Was Arrested for Embezzlement.

Wed., Dec. 03, 2014:  Pelham Proposed To Build A Town Hall and Post Office in 1857.  

Tue., Jul. 8, 2014:  Account of Devastating Fire at One Fifth Avenue in 1902. 

Wed., Feb. 19, 2014:  Dedication of the Post Office in the Pelham National Bank Building and More About Old Post Offices.

Tue., Feb. 04, 2014:  Lyman's Pharmacy and Post Office Was Located in the Building That Still Stands at One Fifth Avenue in Pelham. 

Tue., Jan. 28, 2014:  The Pelham Manor Post Office.

Tue., Jul. 4, 2006:  Seth T. Lyman, Pelham's Own Medicine Man of the Late 19th Century. 

Bell, Blake, A., The Lyman Pharmacy Building At One Fifth Avenue in Downtown Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 19, May 7, 2004, p. 12, col. 1.

From the earliest years of the 20th century until 1922, the Pelham Post Office that served the Village of North Pelham and the Village of Pelham (Pelham Heights) was located in the Lyman Pharmacy Building at One Fifth Avenue, a structure that still stands.  That building was sold in 1922.  Thus, the post office was moved to a building that was constructed by Pelham real estate specialist and builder John T. Brook.  The building no longer stands, but once was located about where today's building at 87 Wolfs Lane stands.

Pelham Post Office in the Lyman Pharmacy Building at One

Fifth Avenue in About 1910.  The Entrance to the Post Office

is the Door on the Far Right of the Building.  NOTE:  Click

on Image to Enlarge.

In 1922, Seth T. Lyman was still the postmaster of the Pelham Post office located in the Lyman Pharmacy Building at 1 Fifth Avenue.  With the pending sale of that building, plans to move the post office to a new structure nearby -- essentially just across the New Haven Main Line railroad tracks from the Lyman Pharmacy Building -- were put into place.  The only problem was that the new structure was under construction with the possibility that it would not be finished by the November 1, 1922 deadline to leave the old premises.

Only two months before the November 1 deadline for the move, there was nothing but a vacant lot where the new post office building was planned.  Contractor John T. Brook kicked into overdrive to construct a two-story brick building 25 feet wide by 90 feet long.  By Friday, October 27, 1922, the building consisted only of bare brick walls and "unfloored beams."  

John T. Brook offered his construction gang "healthy" bonuses to complete the work in time to move the post office into the building the following week.  The construction crew obliged, working virtually around the clock to finish walls and ceilings, plaster everything, and lay tile floors.  By Tuesday, October 31, all the electrical work including electric lights had been installed, plumbing fixtures had been put in place, and partitions had been erected.  The building was completed and ready for occupancy that day.  

All night overnight the evening of Tuesday, October 31 and into the wee morning hours of Wednesday, November 1, Postmaster Seth T. Lyman supervised the transfer of the "fixtures, etc." from the old building.  Pelhamites never dreamed the work would be completed by November 1, but it was.  Indeed, Pelhamites were surprised on Wednesday morning to see "Business as Usual" in the new Post Office building.  Indeed, the local newspaper reported that:

"Wednesday morning there were a number of letters mailed in the drop box of the old building, many people being unable to believe that the transfer to the new location had been made so quickly."

The villages of Pelham and North Pelham had a new post office.  Postal services were conducted out of that building until they moved into the Pelham National Bank building on November 1, 1936.

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"Pelham Post Office Moves In On Time
-----
John T. Brook Sets Record In Building New Post Office Building
-----
Rapid Growth of Town Has Increased Postal Business Fifty Percent In the Last Year
-----

Pelham Post office is now housed in its new building on Fifth avenue and the pessimists who two months ago saw the vacant lot on which the building now stands and shook their heads when it was stated that the new post office had to be completed by November 1st, are silent in astonishment.  John T. Brook, the builder, is smiling, and the construction crew is happy in possession of healthy bonuses which 'John T.' hung up as an incentive to put the building 'across' on time.  And to them all is due credit, for the building on the fifty-foot lot, comprises two stories and fourteen apartments.

Never was such activity seen before in building circles in the Pelhams.  On Friday the bare brick walls of the interior matched the unfloored beams -- and then the 'gang' went to work.  The store 25 x 90 had to be floored, the front of the store built and glass front put in, the walls and ceilings plastered and finished tiled floor laid, electric lights installed, plumbing fixtures put in place, partitions erected and the place ready by Tuesday.  The old post office had been sold, and the new one had to be ready for occupancy in three days.  Tuesday night, the store was complete.  Postmaster Seth Lyman stayed up all night supervising the transfer of the fixtures, etc., from the old building and Pelhamites were surprised on Wednesday morning to see 'Business as Usual' in the new building with Postmaster Lyman and John T. Brook receiving a host of congratulations for the smart piece of work.  

Thje post office is now housed in a handsome tapestry brick building of Old English style.  There is a main entrance and a side entrance for postal employees and mail delivery.  In the reaar of the office is a rest room and sanitary accommodations.  The new office is well lighted and aired and is a decided improvement on the old building.  

The rapid growth of North Pelham and Pelham Heights which are both served from the Fifth avenue post office is shown by the present volume of business which is fifty per cent ahead of the corresponding period of last year.  The staff of the Pelham station, which is a sub-station of the New York post office consists of Superintendent Lyman, two clerks, five carriers and a special delivery boy.  There are five delivery routes, one being added last year.

Wednesday morning there were a number of letters mailed in the drop box of the old building, many people being unable to believe that the transfer to the new location had been made so quickly.

The new office is designed according to Governmental standards, and considerable surprise was evinced when John T. Brook announced to postal authorities in New York that the building was ready for occupancy and Superintendent Lyman would conduct the post office business in the new location November 1st.

'It had to be done,' was Brook's only comment."

Source:  Pelham Post Office Moves In On Time -- John T. Brook Sets Record In Building New Post Office Building -- Rapid Growth of Town Has Increased Postal Business Fifty Percent In the Last Year, The Pelham Sun, Nov. 3, 1922, Vol. 13, No. 36, p. 1, col. 4.

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More on Famed Pelhamville Druggist and Postmaster Seth T. Lyman and the Building he Built

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The lovely building that stands at One Fifth Avenue at First Street in the Village of Pelham once was both a Pharmacy and the Village post office.  It is the second building on that site.  The first burned in a major fire that killed three and entirely destroyed the structure.   Immediately below is an early post card view of the building that replaced the original structure -- the building we know today as One Fifth Avenue.  The post card was postmarked in June 1910.  The pharmacy entrance is the main entrance to the building, on the left.  The post office is on the right in the post card view below.

1910 Post Card View of One Fifth Avenue, Designed

by Architect Arthur G. C. Fletcher. Erected on the Site

of the Original Building that Burned on March 14, 1902.

Source: Collection of the Author.

NOTE: Click on Image to Enlarge.

According to one account, on March 1, 1895, a young man trained as a pharmacist named Seth T. Lyman leased a ground floor retail space with an apartment above in a building located at the corner of today's First Street and Fifth Avenue.  The building was known as "The Pelham Building."  The location was the business center of Pelhamville at the time with little development in the entire area.  Indeed, an account published in 1896 noted that when a local resident needed a location to hold a public auction of a donkey, he chose the Lyman Pharmacy.  

At the time, the building was owned by Clarence Lyons.  It housed the United States Post Office in a small retail space adjacent to Lyman Pharmacy.  The postmaster was Henry Iden of Pelham. 

In 1898, Seth T. Lyman was appointed Assistant Postmaster to help Henry Iden with his duties.  Barely six months after Lyman's appointment, Henry Iden resigned as Postmaster and Lyman succeeded him in the position.  Thereafter, for the next twenty-eight years, Lyman manned his pharmacy and an adjacent post office.  

Between 4:30 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. on March 14, 1902 during a massive blizzard, a tragic fire entirely destroyed the wooden frame building known as The Pelham Building that had been constructed in 1892.  A young boy named Rudolph Youchim was killed in the blaze.  His pregnant mother, Mary, was rescued from the building and gave birth later that day, though she and the newborn died the same day.  

Seth T. Lyman bought the lot after the fire and engaged architect Arthur G. C. Fletcher to design a replacement for the building destroyed by fire.  The replacement building, shown in the post card view above, was built shortly thereafter.  It still stands.  Its fascade is surprisingly similar to the original fascade.

The pharmacy and the post office reopened in Lyman's new building.  Seth Lyman operated his pharmacy and oversaw the post office next door in his building until his retirement as Postmaster on July 1, 1926.  At the time of his retirement as Postmaster, the local newspaper published a fascinating and nostalgic article describing postal delivery in the early days of Pelhamville as Seth T. Lyman was just entering service as Assistant Postmaster.  The article, quoted in full below, is a fascinating glimpse of a simpler time in much of today's Village of Pelham.  

When Lyman built his new building after the terrible fire of 1902, he placed the main entrance on the corner of the building for a reason.  For many years the tiny Pelhamville Depot on the New Haven Line had stood directly across First Street essentially on the lot containing today's Pelham National Bank building at One Wolfs Lane (recently a post office and now the offices of Meridian Risk and other businesses).  There was a time when the residents of Pelhamville expected First Street to grow into an important business stretch of the little settlement.  In 1893 and 1894, however, the train station was moved to its present location and, over the next few years, commercial development along Fifth Avenue proceeded much more quickly than along First Street.  Apparently hedging his bets, Lyman and his architect placed the main entrance on the corner of First Street and Fifth Avenue, easily accessible to, and seen from, both streets.

The tiny little post office had classic mail cubby-holes for each residence.  Lyman and, later, an Assistant Postmaster and clerk sorted the mail to be picked up each day by local residents who walked or drove their carriages to Lyman's Pharmacy.  An enterprising local man named Willie Bronfield began a private mail delivery service.  For a charge of twenty five cents per month per customer, he delivered the mail each day until the population grew to a sufficient level to require the post office to provide free carrier service in about 1909.  

The article below includes a picture of Seth T. Lyman in his wire-rim glasses as a young man.  It provides an important yet nostalgic glimpse of an earlier time in the history of the Village of Pelham.

"SETH T. LYMAN Superintendent of Pelham Post

Office who retires July 1st, after 28 years supervision

of mails in Pelham.  Source:  Lyman Resigns As Post

Office Superintendent -- Will Retire July 1, After Twenty-

eight Years as Chief of Pelham Post Office, The Pelham

Sun, Jun. 25, 1926, Vol. 17, No. 17, p. 1, cols. 4-5.  NOTE:

Click on Image to Enlarge.

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"Lyman Resigns As Post Office Superintendent
-----
Will Retire July 1, After Twenty-eight Years as Chief of Pelham Post Office
-----

After twenty-eight years' supervision over the dispatch and delivery of mails at Pelham Post Office, Seth T. Lyman has tendered his resignation as superintendent, to become effective July 1st.  Mr. Lyman will retire to his summer home at Lake St. Catherine, Vt.  He has announced no plans for the future.

Coming to Pelham thirty-one years ago and establishing himself as a druggist at Fifth Avenue and First Street, Mr. Lyman has had great opportunity to watch the growth of the Pelhams.  Appointed assistant postmaster in 1898 and subsequently appointed postmaster and superintendent when Pelham district was taken over by the New York City post office, he has seen the advance of the town mirrored in the increased demand for postal service.

When Mr. Lyman was appointed assistant postmaster, the late Henry Iden presided over the little office adjoining the drug store, opposite the station at Fifth Avenue and First Street.  A grade crossing led over the railroad right of way, and the residents of the Pelhams, in horse-drawn vehicles, drove to the post office daily and applied for their mail.  First Street was then the business street of Pelham, the main line station of the New Haven Railroad being on this thoroughfare.

Six months after Mr. Lyman's appointment to the post office, Mr. Iden resigned and Lyman succeeded him.  In 1905 [sic; should be 1902] the post office building burned.  After rebuilding, the main entrance of the new store opened on Fifth Avenue, which street was bidding for popularity as the business avenue.

Carrier service, although of an unofficial nature, was introduced at that time in the person of Willie Bronfield, a negro, who at a charge of twenty five cents per month per customer, delivered the mail to the Town.

By 1909 the Town had grown to such an extent that carrier service had to be taken over by the office.  In order to facilitate this the Pelham district was taken into the New York City office, and Lyman retained as superintendent.  At that time two carrier routes were established in the territory covered by the office in North Pelham and Pelham Heights.  The staff consisted of the superintendent, one clerk and two carriers.

At this time the post office was moved from the old location to the newly built Douglas Block, adjoining the present location.  Here the office remained until 1925 when it was moved to its present location in a building erected especially for that purpose by John T. Brook.

The post office staff today consists of a superintendent, four clerks and nine carriers.

When Mr. Lyman announced his intention of retiring, many expressions of tribute to his faithful service were received from those who have known him during his administration at the local post office, among whom were Congressman Ben L. Fairchild, who sent the following letter of commendation to Superintendent Lyman:

'Dear Mr. Lyman:  I cannot resist a feeling of regret at the news that you have tendered your resignation as superintendent of the Pelham post office.  You have been our courteous and efficient postmaster for so many years that sentimentally it seems to me that Pelham and Dr. Lyman are synonymous terms.  If your purpose is to retire to a well earned rest, you have certainly earned the right to the fullest enjoyment that life affords and to the commendation of your neighbors and constituents whom you have served so well.

'To you and to Mrs. Lyman, my very best wishes are extended. 

Sincerely yours,

(Signed) BEN L. FAIRCHILD.'"

Source:  Lyman Resigns As Post Office Superintendent -- Will Retire July 1, After Twenty-eight Years as Chief of Pelham Post Office, The Pelham Sun, Jun. 25, 1926, Vol. 17, No. 17, p. 1, cols. 4-5.

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I have written about Seth T. Lyman and One Fifth Avenue, the building he built that still stands at One Fifth Avenue on a number of occasions.  For examples, see:  

Mon., May 16, 2016:  Fatal Fire in 1902 at One Fifth Avenue Burned Down the Post Office and Pharmacy.  

Tue., Jul. 8, 2014:  Account of Devastating Fire at One Fifth Avenue in 1902.

Tue., Feb. 04, 2014:  Lyman's Pharmacy and Post Office Was Located in the Building That Still Stands at One Fifth Avenue in Pelham. 

Tue., Jul. 4, 2006:  Seth T. Lyman, Pelham's Own Medicine Man of the Late 19th Century. 

Bell, Blake, A., The Lyman Pharmacy Building At One Fifth Avenue in Downtown Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 19, May 7, 2004, p. 12, col. 1.

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Pelham Proposed To Build A Town Hall and Post Office in 1857

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During the early nineteenth century, most of Pelham’s population lived on City Island, Pelham Neck or along the mainland on Long Island Sound.  There were few homes on Boston Post Road or in the areas that later came to be known as Prospect Hill and Pelhamville.  

The Town of Pelham decided in 1857 to build its first Town Hall.  Construction began a year later on today’s Shore Road near today’s Pelham Bit Stables / Bronx Equestrian Center in Pelham Bay Park.  Today's Historic Pelham Blog posting provides some early history of the Town's original Town Hall that was razed during the 1950's and transcribes an article published in 1857 announcing a decision by the Town to build the structure to serve as its Town Hall and Post-Office.  

The Town of Pelham was incorporated on March 7, 1788.  The 1790 census, conducted barely two years later, found that 199 residents lived in Pelham:  45 free white males 16 and older, 31 free white males younger than 16, 84 free white females, 1 person in the “all other free persons” category and 38 slaves.  Most of these residents lived on (or near) City Island.

As a consequence, meetings of the Town Board were held on City Island.  Annual Town meetings were held in a private home on the island.  For example, early records reflect that the Town Board paid Benjamin Horton of City Island $5.00 “for the use of his home for the annual Town meeting”.

With the advent in 1848 of what became the New Haven Line railroad, however, the mainland population of Pelham began to grow.  The political center of the Town began to shift ever so slowly.  At this time, Pelham had neither a Town Hall nor a post office.  By the 1850's, there was a post office known as the "Pelham" post office, but it was located in New Rochelle.  Residents of City Island and Pelham Neck were forced to travel to New Rochelle or to the Village of Westchester for their postal needs.  The Town responded in 1857 by applying for its own post office and proposing to build a "substantial" brick building on Shore Road to serve as its post office and its Town Hall.

The one-room brick building had a two-story brick tower at its front and a date stone inscribed “1858” above its front entry.  The structure was located where it would be easily accessible from City Island via City Island Road, from Prospect Hill, and even from Pelhamville (via Wolf’s Lane to Split Rock Road and then to Shore Road).  As odd as it may seem today, the little Town Hall was built roughly near the geographic center of what then was a very large Town of Pelham.

The Town Hall building served as a town meeting center and even as a school when necessary.  It served its purpose until the City of New York annexed the area known today as City Island and Pelham Bay Park in the mid-1890's.  

Shamefully, the City of New York took virtually no steps to protect the many historic structures located in Pelham Bay Park after annexation.  Ultimately, there was a scandal played out in the press when The New York Times disclosed that a City official and his cronies “squatted” in some of the structures – paying little or no rent – while many of the structures suffered the ravages of vandalism and thievery.  

Despite New York City’s shameful neglect of the historic assets in Pelham Bay Park, the little Town Hall building survived for many years.  It may have survived only because, for years, the City allowed it to be used as a tool shed.  By 1954, however, vandals had taken their toll on the little building and the Parks Department boarded it up to prevent further damage.

Once the City Parks Department boarded the building up, its sad fate was assured.  The little Town Hall building never reached its one-hundredth birthday.  In 1955, the structure was razed by the City of New York. 

Undated Photograph Showing Pelham Town Hall on Shore Road.

Detail from 1868 Beers Map of Town of Pelham with Red

Circle Indicating Location of Pelham Town Hall.  Note:

Click Image to Enlarge.

Undated Photograph of Pelham Town Hall on

Shore Road Not Long Before it Was Razed.

Today's Seal of the Town of Pelham with an

Artist's Rendering of the Original Pelham Town

Hall in its Center.

Below is a brief article published in 1857 describing the decision of the Town of Pelham to apply for its own post office and to build a "substantial" building to serve as its Town Hall and post office.

"A TOWN HALL AND POST-OFFICE FOR PELHAM -- It is probably known to but very few that the early settled township of Pelham, Westchester County, cannot boast of a single Post-Office within its boundaries.  It is true there is a Post-Office known as Pelham, but that is located in the south-western section of New-Rochelle, where it accommodates only a limited portion of the inhabitants of Pelham, for not more than a dozen families reside within a mile of this office, and some of these are in the habit of visiting the Village of New-Rochelle almost daily, and receive their letters and newspapers through the Post-Office at that place, while the inhabitants of City Island, numbering about 400, as well as those residing on Pelham Point and vicinity, are without Post-Office facilities, and are compelled to travel to New-Rochelle or Westchester, from three to four miles, to insure the dispatch or receipt of a letter by mail.  It may, therefore, prove interesting to those who have friends or business correspondents residing on that little out-of-the-way spot called City Island to learn that the good people are waking up to their own rights and taking the necessary steps for the establishment of a Post-Office in the vicinity of the old turnpike [NOTE:  today's Shore Road] and the road leading to Pelham Point and City Island; and in case of succeeding with their application they purpose [sic] erecting a substantial building to answer the double purpose of a Town Hall and Post-Office; and as the location indicated is understood to be satisfactory to the residents of City Island, comprising about two-thirds of the entire population of the township it cannot reasonably fail to meet the approval of those residing immediately surrounding the proposed site; in fact, it is believed that the gentlemen whose country seats are situated on the shore of Long Island Sound in that neighborhood will contribute liberally toward the erection of a public building that will do credit to the town of Pelham."

Source:  A TOWN HALL AND POST-OFFICE FOR PEHAM, New-York Daily Tribune, Mar. 20, 1857, p. 7, cols. 4-5.  

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I have written before about the old Pelham Town Hall that once stood on today's Shore Road.  See:  

Tue., May 11, 2010:  Mystery Solved - Pelham Town Hall That Once Stood On Shore Road Was Used as a School.

Mon., Mar. 13, 2006:  Two Photographs of Pelham's Town Hall That Once Stood On Shore Road.

Bell, Blake A., Pelham's First Town Hall on Shore Road in Pelham Manor, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 35, Sept. 3, 2004, p. 8, col. 1.

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Dedication of the Post Office in the Pelham National Bank Building and More About Old Post Offices

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The Pelham National Bank Building at One Wolfs Lane is unquestionably the most fascinating structure in the Town of Pelham.  It is fascinating because the original intent was to turn it into a true skyscraper.  It was designed so that many additional floors could be added.  It also is fascinating because the building has one of the saddest histories of any building in our Town.  

As I have written previously (and rather extensively), the Pelham National Bank failed at the outset of the Great Depression.  It closed on Roosevelt's National Bank "holiday."  Like so many other such banks, The Pelham National Bank never reopened after the holiday.

Pelham depositors were among the many across our nation who lost much of their life savings.  The criminal and civil lawsuits that followed the Pelham National Bank failure proceeded for many years, with the principal bank official spending significant jail time before his death.  

Nearly as interesting, however, is Pelham National Bank Building's relationship to the postal history of Pelhamville, the Village of North Pelham, the Village of Pelham, Pelham Heights and the Heights.  It seems that the first United States Post Office in the area was located as a shanty lean-to attached to  the Pelhamville Depot.  The post office then moved to Lyman's Pharmacy Building at One Fifth Avenue.  Thereafter, on November 1, 1936, it moved to the Pelham National Bank building.

At the time, it was hoped that during the depths of the Great Depression , rent paid by the federal government would improve the position of the bankruptcy estate of the failed bank and, thus, would allow a larger distribution to former depositors of the bank.

Today's Historic Pelham Blog transcribes articles from The Pelham Sun describing the opening of the post office and reproduces a couple of the images (though not all) that appeared with the articles.

Source:  Postal Officials Dedicate New P.O. Station, Pelham Sun, Nov. 6, 1936, Second Section, p. 9, col. 1.

Source:  Postal Officials Dedicate New P.O. Station, Pelham Sun, Nov. 6, 1936, Second Section, p. 9, col. 1.

"Postal Officials Dedicate New P.O. Station
-----
Prominent Guests Attend Ceremonies in Quarters in Pelham Bank Building
-----
Postmaster Albert Goldman Officiates at Dedication; Speakers Include Representative of Postmaster General at Washington, Congressman Fitzpatrick, Mayor Amato, Former Congressman Ben L. Fairchild and Others.
-----

Pelham's new post office station at Fifth avenue and First street in North Pelham opened its doors to the public on Saturday morning [November 1, 1936].  The new office which occupies the ground floor of the old Pelham National Bank Building, was officially dedicated by Postmaster Albert Goldman, and postal officials in a short ceremony which was held at 10 o'clock.  The speakers were Joseph Betterly, Supt. of Post Office Quarters at Washington, Congressman James M. Fitzpatrick, Supervisor's Clerk W. E. Clark, representing Supervisor Harold W. Davis, Edward D. Loughman, Receiver of the defunct Pelham National Bank [Editor's Note:  Which closed during the National Bank Holiday of the Great Depression declared by FDR and never reopened, leading to the jailing of the Bank President]; former Congressman Ben L. Fairchild, and Mayor Dominic Amato of North Pelham.  The Rev. Arthur A. Campbell of St. Catherine's Church pronounced the invocation and the Rev. Herbert H. Brown of the Church of the Redeemer offered the benediction.

The cadet band of the New York Military Academy, which had come to Pelham for the N.Y.M.A.-Iona football game opened the program as they marched from the depot plaza to the new post office building.

As the band played 'The Star Spangled Banner,' a color guard of Pelham Post No. 50, American Legion, headed by Post Commander Frederick Swafford, raised the American Flag on the staff above the entrance of the post office.  Post-master Goldman officially opened the building, by unlocking the front door.  As the band played another selection the guests of honor and a large audience went inside the building for the dedication ceremonies which were presided over by the Postmaster.

The speakers addressed the audience from the mezzanine balcony of the new post office.  While the ceremonies were being conducted, there was a steady stream of customers purchasing stamps and mailing letters in the public lobby of the building.  

Amato Extends Welcome

Mayor Amato extended the welcome of the people of Pelham to the postal officials and the gratitude of the citizens for the increased post office facilities which will be afforded in the new station.

During the ceremonies Mr. Goldman introduced Joseph Willon, Superintendent of Delivery of New York City and Postal Inspector O. M. Schaeffer who have been in charge of the preliminary work and the installation of the new post office station here.

After the ceremony the postal officials and guests attended a luncheon of the Lions Club held at the Pelham Country Club.  There were 89 present.  The luncheon program was arranged by a committee composed of Thomas M. Kennett, Robert A. Cremins and Ken G. Hancher.  William Avery, pianist, and James Moon, vocalist, provided entertainment during the luncheon.  

Mr. Betterly came as the representative of the 4th Asst. Postmaster General Smith W. Purdum, who was responsible for the final selection of the bank building for the post office station.  

Mr. Betterly's address follows:

'It is an honor and a privilege to be here today to join with the citizens of Pelham and Westchester County in these ceremonies marking the housing of your postal unit in modern up-to-date quarters.  

'The City of New York and those suburban areas within the district of the New York Post Office have been accustomed from the earliest days to the best possible postal service.  Under the efficient administration of your Postmaster, Honorable Albert Goldman, an able supervisory organization, and a small army of competent postal employees, this tradition is being well maintained.  

'Pelham is to be congratulated upon the location of its postal unit in this fine building.  It is equally deserving of congratulation that it is a part of the great New York postal district, sharing in the benefits that come from careful administration and efficient management.

'It is appropriate that postal facilities in Pelham should be the finest obtainable, having in mind the high character of its citizenship, its splendid civic institutions, homes, and business establishments.  

'It was a source of gratification to the department to be able to meet this requirement through the leasing of this splendid building which is being opened today; a post office building which would do credit to any community.  It was equally gratifying to the department that while serving its own interest in securing modern and convenient postal accommodations, its action also served to restore to useful service this splendid structure and to make available some return to those many citizens of Pelham, who had financial interest in the banking institution previously conducted herein.

John Bolton Was First Postmaster

'The Town of Pelham has had a varied postal history since 1849, when a post office was first established here with John Bolton as its first Postmaster.  This office was discontinued on August 8, 1860 and reestablished  on September 8th of the same year.  It continued in operation until 1893 when it was again discontinued, and all mail service was supplied from New Rochelle.

'The present branch of the New York Post Office, which now serves this community, was established in 1910, and the increase in postal business here has greatly exceeded the average for the country as a whole.  This is due of course to the rapid growth experienced in this section which has proudly surpassed all others in the country in the past decade.  But with its growth, Pelham and Westchester County have nevertheless retained those elements of beauty and charm which have, from the earliest days, made this an enjoyable place to visit, or in which to live.

'It is a far cry from those early days when our nation was struggling to establish itself, and postal service was not only expensive, but slow, mail being transported by horseback and stagecoach, to the present time when postal service is the most inexpensive commodity available to us, and our mail is transported by swift express trains, fast ocean liners and an airmail service that is unequalled [sic] in the efficiency of its operation in the world.  

'Your post office is an institution of service, providing facilities for all the people.  It is the constant endeavor of all of us in the Post Office Department and in the Postal Service, to so conduct its activities that it will always merit the confidence and support of the people which it now enjoys.  

Post Office Is A Barometer

'There is no better barometer of the condition of the business of the country than the postal revenues.  These revenues have been increasing from month to month for more than two years, and the indications are that they will continue to increase.  It is estimated that for the fiscal year 1936 postal revenues will be approximately $35,000,000 more than for the preceding year, and that for the quarter ended September 30, 1936 they will be about $15,000,000 more than for the same quarter in 1935.  This is indeed indicative of a marked improvement in business conditions throughout the nation.

'Permit me to express again my sincere pleasure in having the opportunity to participate in these ceremonies and to express the wish that as you use this building for your postal business throughout the years to come, you will be mindful of the ideals and principles of the postal service as enunciated by Postmaster General Holt in 1858:

'The Post Office Department in its ceaseless labors, pervades every channel of commerce and every theatre of human enterprise, and while visiting, as it does, kindly every fireside it mingles with the throbbings of almost every heart in the land.  In the amplitude of its beneficence, it ministers to all climes, and creeds, and pursuits with the same eager readiness and with equal fullness of fidelity.  It is the delicate ear trump through which alike nations and families and isolated individuals whisper their joys and their sorrows, their convictions and their sympathies, to all who listen for their coming.'

'It has been my privilege to officiate at a number of openings of post office stations,' said Post Master Goldman.  'In most cases the new stations are in Federal buildings erected for post office purposes.  This is not the case in the present instance.

'This building was originally erected for banking purposes, but as you see, there being an affinity between banks and post offices, it has been converted late into what I think is a very fine type of post office, one befitting the dignity of this town and a place wherein the patrons of the office will be provided with proper facilities for the transaction of their postal business, and where the employees of the post office will be housed in a commodious and comfortable building.  

'Your very fine town is a landmark in this state.  It is the site of one of the early settlements, and as its name implies, was first settled by those sturdy Anglo Saxon pioneers who have developed this into the Empire State.

'It is a matter of history that this town almost three hundred years ago, in 1642, offered shelter to Anne Hutchinson and her little band who first formed a community in this place.  Their spirit lives in the many social, religious, civic and other welfare organizations that are so representative of this community.

Records Date Back 75 Years

'From a postal standpoint the first available record of post offices listed by the Post Office Department that we have in the New York Post Office, dates back almost 75 years, and I have no doubt that if I were to go into the files of the Post Office department for the information, we would find that the Pelham Post Office had been established long before that date.

'In acquiring these quarters, the Post Office Department is aiding the gentleman who is acting as the Receiver of the bank and at the same time aiding the people of Pelham by adding to the assets of the institution.

'The Post Office Department is also following the practice which has been inaugurated by this administration, of either replacing leased quarters with government owned buildings, wherever such a practice was to the advantage of the department, by lessening the rental cost to the government, or where this was not possible, to replace the present leased quarters with others in which improved facilities for both patrons and employees were provided.

'Up to the present time there have been eighteen government-owned buildings authorized for the New York Post Office and its stations.  Of this number eight have been completed and are now occupied.  All of the remainder are in course of construction and will be occupied within the coming calendar year.

'These Federal buildings in every case replaced leased quarters which have been in use for many years.  The old quarters have become obsolete and did not properly fill the conception of what a United States Post Office should look like.  

'The accommodations for patrons were insufficient, and the employees did not have the facilities that they rightfully should have in order to perform their work in the best surroundings.  

'In the case of both new Federal buildings and new leased quarters, there is a vast improvement in both appearance and use over the quarters they have replaced.  

'It is also a fact that in the erection of these government-owned post offices in New York City, several million dollars have been spent, and this has benefitted [sic], not alone the workmen engaged in the erection of the buildings, but also those engaged in the fabrication of the materials used in the erection of the buildings.

'I desire to congratulate the Town of Pelham upon the fact that this portion of the building which has been idle for some time past is now again occupied with profitable results to all concerned.  

'Your post office, which was established as a branch of the New York Post Office more than 25 years ago, is the best indication of the growth of your town.

'When the post office at Pelham was established as a branch of the New York Post Office on February 16, 1910, there were 2 employees assigned here, and the receipts for the year following the establishment of the station were $4,700.00.  

'The establishment of a free carrier delivery service followed almost immediately, and since that time the growth of the station has been steady and constant.

'At the present time you have here in your station more than 35 employees.

'The receipts which were less than $5,000 the year the station was established, will approximate almost $50,000 for the year 1936, this revenue equalling [sic] the receipts of many first class post offices.

'There are approximately 90 money orders issued here daily, and the average amouunt of such orders is approximately $1,000 a day.

'The registry and insurance business of this station bear favorable comparison with any town of similar size.  

'There are mailed in Pelham approximately 5,000 pieces of mail each day.

Open Postal Savings Branch

'I have made recommendation to the Post Office Department that a postal savings branch be installed here for the convenience of thos 
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Post Office Was Dedicated Saturday
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(Continued from Page 9)

who desire to make use of that important post office facility.  This is now possible because of the added facilities that we have in this new office.

'I wish to extend my good wishes  to the Town of Pelham and to the postal employees here, and to assure you that it is my desire of the Post Office Department, to give the best possible service to the patrons of the office.

'I know that with the friendly relationship existing between the employees of the Pelham Post Office and the patrons of the office, the employees of this station will in their new home exert themselves to prove that our postal service is what we claim it to be, the best public service facility in the world.'  

Congressman James M. Fitzpatrick had high praise for the post office officials and the employees, paying distinct tribute to the 'boys in gray' the carriers who he said, are generally overlooked when the service is commended.

The effort of the Receiver's office to secure government approval of the plan to locate the Post Office in the bank building was related by Receiver Loughman.  He highly commended Warner Pyne, former Receiver, for his work in this behalf, and expressed his gratitude in the interest of the depositors of the bank,, to the postal officials for leasing the premises.

Mr. Clark expressed the regret of Supervisor Harold W. Davis, who was unable to attend the program.  He extended to the postal officials the welcome of the Town of Pelham and predicted that the business of the local office in its new quarters would soon double that of the former location.

Postmaster Goldman read a telegram from former Supervisor William M. McBride, expressing regret at not being able to attend.

The days when the post office was situated in the Pelhamville depot of the New Haven Railroad were recalled by former Congressman Ben L. Fairchild whose memory dated further back than those of his audience, with the possible exception of one or two of the older residents who were present.

Post Office Was At Station

'The New Haven Railroad track was at grade crossing when I first came to Pelham 45 years ago,' he said.  'The Pelhamville station was a frame shanty, and the gentleman who was station agent was also the postmaster.  Pelham Heights was nothing but a woods, and there were only a few scattered houses along the Esplanade in Pelham Manor.'

He told how the increase in population on both sides of the railroad tracks prompted the residents to incorporate the villages of Pelham and North Pelham.  The villagers called for their mail at the Post Office, which had been moved to Lyman's drug store, First street and Fifth avenue.

'The advance was so promising, that it became necessary to consider means of distributing mail by carrier service.  When the Postmaster, Seth T. Lyman, was approached, he sacrificed his position as postmaster to become superintendent of the station so that Pelham could gain the benefit of carrier service under the supervision of the New York City Post Office.  I want to thank Mr. Lyman for this splendid service in the interest of his community, and I know that the citizens of Pelham echo this appreciation.'

Mr. Lyman, who is still a resident of Linden avenue, Chester Park, has been spending a few months at his Summer home at Lake St. Catherine, Vt.  He was unable to come to Pelham for the ceremony."

Source:  Postal Officials Dedicate New P.O. Station, Pelham Sun, Nov. 6, 1936, Second Section, p. 9, col. 1.

"N.Y.M.A. Cadets Add To Color Of Dedication
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The spectacle of the dedication of Pelham's new post office station on Saturday was greatly enhanced by the presence of the 32-piece band of the New York Military Academy at Cornwall, which staged a parade from the depot plaza to the post office.  It played a short musical program before the ceremonies inside the building.  The band was secured through the courtesy of John G. Shattuck, of Pelham Manor and Capt. Frank Patillo, headmaster of the school.

The bank later led the parade of the New York Military Academy Corps of Cadets from Travers Island to the Memorial Stadium in Mount Vernon before the N.Y.M.A. - Iona football game."

Source:  N.Y.M.A. Cadets Add To Color of Dedication, Pelham Sun, Nov. 6, 1936, Second Section, p. 9, col. 7.

"First Stamp Purchased By Mrs. H. Brown
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To Mrs. Robert Brown of Harmon avenue the honor of purchasing the first stamp and mailing the first letter at the new Pelham Station of the New York Post Office.  When postal clerks opened their windows for business at 7 o'clock on Saturday morning they found Mrs. Brown waiting for them.  The first stamp sold was used on the first letter mailed.  The addressee of the letter got the souvenir.

Supt. Frank Grant reports that although business at the new post office station on the first day was below the usual Saturday average, the Money Order business exceeded the average day."

Source:  First Stamp Purchased By Mrs. H. Brown, Pelham Sun, Nov. 6, 1936, Second Section, p. 9, col. 7.

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