The 2018 USPS National Postal Forum is currently underway in San Antonio, TX  from May 6th–9th. As a 3PL company who has had a decades-long partnership with the USPS, King Solutions is always honored to attend the National Postal Forum. Each year, we meet with industry influencers to discuss new strategies for USPS Destination Entry Services and forge stronger bonds with that help our customers move their freight efficiently.

Read our recap of the 2017 USPS National Postal Forum.

The USPS is one incredible organization with a long and storied history. They may not always be appreciated, but they are one of the most hard-working and valuable organizations that have ever existed in the U.S.

There really is no organization like them in the world. In celebration of the 2018 USPS National Postal Forum, we’ve gathered a bunch of fun, and often unexpected, facts about the USPS for you to enjoy!

Fun facts about the USPS
1) The Post Office Department was founded in 1775. Benjamin Franklin was the first Postmaster General and was paid an annual salary of $1,000.

2) Megan J. Brennan, the 74th Postmaster General of the United States, was the first female appointed to the position.

3) As of 2016, the USPS employs 639,789 workers.

4) The organization operates one of the largest civilian vehicle fleets in the world. It currently has about 227,896 vehicles.

5) More than 1,400 postal-owned buildings in the U.S. are included in the National Register of Historic Places.

6) The phrase, “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds” is not the official motto of the USPS, despite it being engraved on the James A. Farley Post Office in New York City. The USPS has no official motto, and this phrase was taken from an ancient book by the Persian historian Herodotus. It refers to the messengers of the Persian Empire.

Strange facts about the USPS
1) In 2017, more than 6,000 postal carriers in more than 2,500 cities suffered attacks from dogs. Yikes!

2) In 1913, an Ohio husband and wife mailed their 8-month-old baby his grandmother, who lived a few miles away. This was a common practice in the early days of Parcel Post, and babies could be mailed so long as they didn’t exceed the 11-pound limit.

3) Because U.S. mail used to be the only official way to send money, the punishment for stealing mail used to be death!

4) The USPS still has one mail route (located at the bottom of the Grand Canyon) that delivers packages via mule. The supplies are delivered to the Havasupai, an American Indian tribe who live in the Supai village.

Partnering with the best
Since 1989, King has partnered with the USPS to provide destination entry services for our partners. We ensure that direct marketing mail promptly arrives at over 200 USPS locations each week. But that not all there is to our services. At King, we offer you the entire package. From 24/7 pallet tracking to custom reports and many other capabilities, we provide best-in-class solutions you won’t find anywhere else. Learn more about our destination entry services today.