Parcel Post launched on January 1, 1913, expanding mail-order access for rural Americans.
Some parents mailed their children via Parcel Post because postage was cheaper than train tickets.
In early 1913, Ohio parents mailed their 8-month-old son, James Beagle, for 15 cents in postage.
In February 1914, 4-year-old Charlotte May Pierstorff traveled 73 miles by mail with a railway clerk chaperoning her.
A 1920 newspaper announcement banning child mailings reflected public concern but postal regulations never formally allowed them.
Rural mail carriers were trusted community figures who sometimes supported families beyond delivery duties.
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