Our New Post Office - 1908
We Culver people feel fine over our new post office, and there is good reason for it. If any other town
has a swell a one you'll have to show us.
The old quarters were vacated on the first day of the year, |
|
and about everybody in town made at least one "New Year's call' that day -
Double swinging doors - one for entrance and other for exit - admit the caller to a vestibule in which is found the
mailing box for the receipt of mail matter outside of post office hours. AN inner door swings into a lobby 24 feet
long and 8 feet wide. Here the caller is face to face with the prettiest and most tasteful arrangement of boxes to be
found anywhere.
The finish of the woodwork is polished antuque oak. The fronts of the lock boxes and trimmings of the letter,
newspaper and package receptacles are of a near-back metal with stippled facing. The lock boxes are supplied with
self-locking cominations, a single dial with a arrow pointing to the numbers which form the combination. The
gratings of the general delivery, money order, stamp and carrier's windows are of bronze. The call boxes are numbered
in gold leaf on their glass faces. The open space between the top of the box stack and the ceiling is filled with light iron
altice work.
The popstmaster's private office is entered through a ground glass-paneled door at the west end of the lobby.
The lobby is lighted by day from a window 6X14 feet, and at night the entire office is made brillant by
acetelyne gas burners. A steam plant furnishes heat to the entire bulding.
The total space occupied by the office is 25X38 feet - more than 50 persent greater than the old office.
There are 108 lock boxes - twice as many as before. The number of cell boxes remains the same.
The walls of the office are fininshed in rough plaster in natural color, and the ceiling is pressed steel, painted a
light gray with a double border of pink and dark red.
The interior of the office is yet in some conofusion. Working tables, and railings seperating the rural carrier's
department and other sections are yet to be place.
The only criticism heard is the the position of the general delivery windowo so near the door affords too
limited space to accomadate many at once.
Here's to Postmaster Wiseman and his elegant little office
New Office's Predecessors
The post office occupied its last quarters from 1897 when Henry Speyer was postmaster under McKinley's first
administration.
The buildings was erected exclusively for post office purposes by Mr. Speyer and was originally 16X24
After Dr. Wiseman was appointed postmaster 15 feet was added to its. length.
The local postmasters served in the following order:
Union town - Ephraim Moore (1853), about 1856, James Lyons (1855).
Marmont - Dr.
G. A. Durr (1864), Dr. Durr was an intense admirer of the great Napoleon, and it was on his petition
that the name of Uniontown was changed to Marmont, the name of one of Napoleon's marshalls. The office was
then located in what is now the south portion of the SUrprise building where the doctor had a drug store and
where Dr. Wiseman began his medical reading.
Dr. Durr served two or three terms (1864, 1874) and was succeeded by Joseph Miller (1873; by official list
James Hill, 1869 and followed by Lorenzo D Wiseman Jr. & also LeRoy Rogers both in 1873 )
J. S. Barnheisel (1876) followed and removed the office to a store which formed a portion of the present
J. H. Koontz residence.
Henry Speyer Sr. (1879) was the next postmaster and took the office back to the Durr building.
After a term of four years he was succeeded by Nate Clark (1895) who went back to the present Koontz
residence.
John Koontz came in with Cleveland's first administration (1885–1889) and the office was then removed
to Henry Koontz'a building on the site of the new bank building
(
101 N Main St.).
When (Benjamin) Harrison came into office (1889-1893) Henry Speyer Sr was made postmaster again and the
office was then in the present Saine building (
102
S Main)
Cleveland's second administration (1893-1897) gave Urias Menser the authority to wrtie "P.M." after his name,
and also the privilege of moving the office to the south part of the building now occupied by the hardware
store (
120 S. Main
Henry Speyer Jr. (1897) succeeded Menser and the name of Marmont was changed to Culver.
NOTE: have added some clarification within () under "New Office's Predecessors and also a more accruate
listing of the postmasters are at :
List of
postmasters