Top-left: Badge, mid 1900s
Top-right: Crane assists mail car
Above: Carriers of the mail

"As our country expands in dimensions, and our settlements extend in area—as our population increases in density, and business in activity, the service of the mail must have a corresponding advancement."
—Postmaster General Jacob Collamer, 1849

As the United States expanded, so did the Star Route Service. Star Routes covered the continental United States, Hawaii, and Alaska. Contractors navigated rough terrain, bad weather, and even political corruption. The hardships of the Star Route Service were apparent from the beginning, as was the pioneering spirit of many contractors.