Honoring Our Legacy; Inspiring Our Future

Introduction

The early to mid-1800s saw a rapid expansion of new states and territories to the west. In a time before telegraphs or railroads, the U.S. Mail — as the primary means of correspondence and transportation for valuable and important materials and information—was vital to binding the growing nation together.

When Joseph Habersham was appointed Postmaster General in 1795, he recognized the surveyors’ roles in the Post Office had expanded beyond postal road surveillance. Surveyors investigated cases of missing mail, robbery of mail carriers, and any other crime targeting the mail. New laws and regulations were also instituted, designating certain crimes against the mail as federal offenses. Mail theft came with jail time, or even the death penalty.(6)

On March 6, 1801, Habersham issued an order changing the title of “Surveyor” to “Special Agent,” the first time that title was used by any federal agency. Soon after, in 1830, these special agents were consolidated under the newly formed Office of Instructions and Mail Depredations, which would eventually become the Office of the Chief Postal Inspector. In 1835, Preston S. Loughborough was placed in charge of the new Office of Instructions and Mail Depredations. Loughborough was charged with directing the prosecution of mail robberies, an extension of Hazard’s role as Inspector of Dead Letters.

Stagecoaches and Railroads

The Post Office Department was quick to adapt to the new technologies of the steam engine and railroads. In 1832, the Post Office contracted with rail companies to begin transporting mail by train. The Post Office Department relied on partnerships with America’s railway companies and contracts with various stagecoach companies, like Wells Fargo, to help transport the massive amount of mail sent throughout the rapidly expanding country.

By 1864, the Railway Mail Service created methods to sort mail while on moving passenger trains, which allowed for efficient mail pick-up and delivery across the country, even to small towns where train tracks had not yet been laid. Mail was picked up at train stations by stagecoaches, horses, or steamboats and then delivered to rural areas and the western territories.

During this time, mail was the primary form of communication and transportation of money and valuables. Criminals knew that by robbing the mail, they could potentially walk away with large sums of money. Stagecoach and train robberies became a recurring problem for special agents of the Post Office. To combat mail robberies, special agents were assigned to guard the shipments and investigated attacks on the mail to bring the criminals to justice.

Agent Shallcross and Otho Hinton

In 1845, William H. Dundas, the supervisor of special agents, discovered mail bags throughout Ohio were arriving at their destinations with mail missing. Dundas discussed the suspected mail theft with Special Agent Thomas Shallcross, who developed a suspect — Otho Hinton, the general manager of the Ohio Stage Company, which had a monopoly on all Ohio routes.

Special Agent Shallcross’s investigation confirmed his suspicions, and he set out to catch Hinton in the act. Shallcross determined that Hinton was riding under the canvas, pretending to be asleep. While the stagecoach was moving, he would rifle through the mail using stolen keys and take anything of value.

Hinton was quickly arrested and released on $10,000 bail. However, he never appeared for trial. Shallcross tracked Hinton to Cuba, but because the U.S. and Cuba did not share an extradition treaty, Hinton remained in Cuba for years. Hinton did eventually return to the U.S., thinking he couldn’t be found. Yet Shallcross found him. But before Hinton could be arrested, he jumped to the Kingdom of Hawaii, where yet again there was no extradition treaty. Hinton remained in Hawaii until leaving for Australia, where he eventually died without punishment for his crimes.(7)

By 1853, the Post Office Department employed 18 special agents each in charge of a specific region of the country. Special agents were required to visit mail distributing offices to examine accounts of letters dispatched and received. They also reported on the conditions of horses, stagecoaches, railroads, steamboats, and other conveyances used to transport the mail. For the first time, each agent was assigned a specific territory of responsibility and one of two functions: supervisors of transportation and contracts; or investigators of all matters relating to crimes against the mail and postal employees.