10 More Facts About The USPS That Will Blow Your Mind

Bet you didn't know this about the USPS. Here are 10 more facts about the agency carrying your letters to Santa and college care packages from mom.

1. In 1913, it was legal to mail children. Just attach a stamp to their clothing, and you were good to go.

Via 0.tqn.com

One newspaper reported that it cost 53 cents for parents to mail their daughter to her grandparents for a quick visit. However, it didn’t take long to get a law on the books making it illegal to send children through the mail.

2. USPS delivery vehicles have the steering wheel on the right side of the car. (Don’t worry; they know we’re not in England).

Via americanconsumernews.com

Driving on the right side prevents drivers from leaving their seats while delivering mail.

3. The USPS has the country’s largest retail network – larger than McDonald’s, Starbucks and Walmart combined, domestically.

4. The USPS actually delivers on behalf of FedEx and UPS.

Via blog.smailex.com

Both FedEx and UPS take advantage of the USPS’ expansive delivery network by contacting the USPS to deliver more than 470 million of their packages each year.

5. Elvis is not only the King of Rock ’n’ Roll, but also the King of Postage.

Via iheartelvis.net

Of all the commemorative stamps issued by the USPS, the Elvis stamp, issued in 1993, is the most popular stamp with more than 124 million saved.

6. The smallest post office is 61.3 square feet.

Via upload.wikimedia.org

This PO is located in Ochopee, Fla., and is roughly the size of a garden shed. The building actually served as a storage facility for irrigation pipes in its past life.

7. There is a boat in the Detroit River that has its own ZIP code.

Via blogger.com

This 45-foot contract mail boat operates in the Detroit River and delivers mail to passing ships. Want to send it a letter? Just use the ZIP code 48222.

8. There’s a post office located in a cave 150 feet underground.

Via upload.wikimedia.org

The Stamp Fulfillment Services center is located in Kansas City, Mo., in a limestone cave. It is the Postal Service’s only facility in an underground environment, and the consistent, year-round temperature helps keep stamps in mint condition.

9. There are nearly 42,000 ZIP codes in the country.

Via upload.wikimedia.org

ZIP codes are numbered with the first digit representing a certain group of U.S. states, the second and third digits together representing a region in that group (or perhaps a large city) and the fourth and fifth digits representing a group of delivery addresses within that region.

10. The USPS used to be a bank.

Via uspsoig.gov

Did you know that the USPS used to be a bank in the early 1900s? The Postal Savings System was established in 1910 to help immigrants and the poor get a leg up. The service ended in 1967.