Satchel for letter carriers

The flap of the leather satchel opens to reveal an interior with two pockets. The flexible leather and two pleats on the front create a roomy interior. A leather strap with six holes riveted to the lower center of the flap secures to the buckle that is riveted on the lower front. Both sides have a narrow strip of leather riveted near the rim for reinforcement. The bottom is joined by rivets and stitching. The satchel can be carried by the shoulder strap attached to the two D-rings secured to the back by leather strips. An attached Post Office Department tag reads: “Postmaster / Main Office Museum / Dallas 1, Texas,” and the satchel is said to be from the U.S. post office in Saginaw, Texas.

Commonly referred to as "satchels," letter carriers used the over-the-shoulder type, leather mailbag on deliveries and collection rounds. This form of satchel was used predominately in city delivery service from the 1860s to the 1980s. Sometimes carriers lugged as much as seventy pounds of mail at a time, placing thirty-five pounds of mail in a pair of satchels worn on each shoulder. These durable satchels lasted an average of six years. Preference for the traditional, leather satchels endured years after the 1973 introduction of lighter-weight, canvas versions.

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This page was imported from Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Released by the Smithsonian Institution under CC0 through Smithsonian Open Access.

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