Mail Your Christmas Cards Early

11/29/2012 in DC by Mark Jones

Postal truck in Washington decorated in an appeal for early mailing for the Christmas season, 1921. (Source: Library of Congress) — "The Christmas post office 'A la carte' has made its appearance on national capitol streets." Source: Library of Congress

The holiday season is pretty busy for the United States Post Office -- lots of letters and packages going all over the country, from coast to coast. And we're all familiar with the warnings that tell us to mail our items early if we want to guarantee delivery by Christmas. Well, apparently D.C. residents weren't heeding the warnings back in 1921. So the U.S.P.S. called in the big fella to get the point across. Here's Santa in a "post office a la carte" truck decorated with appeals for early mailing during the Christmas season.

Last Updated:

10/18/2020

Mark Jones has called the D.C. area home since he was three years old. As a child he enjoyed taking family trips to Colonial Williamsburg and impersonating historical figures for elementary school book reports. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in History from Davidson College and a Master's in History and New Media from George Mason University. Prior to coming to WETA, Mark worked as an interpreter for the National Park Service at Arlington House: The Robert E. Lee Memorial, where (much to the amusement of his friends) he wore the "Smokey the Bear" hat as part of his uniform and occasionally donned period clothes. (Photos are classified.)