Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 34, Number 23, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 November 1901 — Postoffices Past and Present [ARTICLE]

Postoffices Past and Present

Show die Wonderful Developemeat of Jasper County in Twenty Years. How many people know how many and what postoffices there are now in Jasper county? Probably there are more postoffices than there are people who know how many there are; if we leave out postmasters and mail clerks etc., whose business it is to keep track of such things. Well, there are just two dozen postoffices now in Jasper county. Nothing better shows the wonderful material and intellectual developement of Jasper county during the past 20 years than the increase in postoffices etnd postal facilities. Twenty years ago we had only 7 postoffices. Three of these were railroad offices and the other four carrier offices, commonly called star routes. Of the 24 present offices, 14 are railroad offices and 10 are star Of the latter 4 are on the Gifford railroad, and probably will have railroad mails before many months. Twenty years ago the railroad offices received from one to two mails a day, and the star route offices one or two a week, generally one. Now the railroad offices received from four to ten mails a day, and the star routes receive from three to six mails a week, mostly six. And the amount of mail matter received by our people has increased even faster, in proportion than our postoffices and mail facilities. Not counting the looal newspapers, it is probable that more than 10 times as many pieces of mail come to Jasper county now as there did 20 years ago. Probably it would also be safe to say that Rensselaer alone now receives three times as many pieces of mail in a week as did the whole county 20 years ago, if we include papers brought by mail but delivered by agents. Twenty years ago only four or five townships had postoffioes, now there are only two townships in the county that have none. The three railroad postoffices 20 years ago were Rensselaer, Remington and Pleasant Ridge. The 4 star route offices were Pleasant Grove, Saltillo, Shortridge and Keener. Pleasant Grove we still have with us, and we think in about the same general neighborhood. Saltillo was east of Pleasant Grove, but still in Barkley. It afterwards was named Culp, but has long been discontinued. Keener was in Keener Tp., somewhere near where DeMotte now is, and Shortridge was either in Keener, or the north part of Union, somewhere near where Virgie now is. Some postoffices that have been established since 20 years ago, have since died or had jheir names ohanged. Such as Pinkamink, in 'Barkley, and Zard, in Hanging Grove; afterward Marlboro and now McCoysburg. There was also an Agate, some plaoe north, we think in Walker, bat it was soon discontinued.