RPO & the WW&F

[Jeff Schumaker]

I stumbled across the following passage from the book, Mail by Rail, The Story of the Postal Transportation Service
, by Bryant Alden Long and William Jefferson Dennis, while searching for something else


But most incredible of the narrow gauges were the tiny two-foot-wide R.P.O. tracks of Maine. A typical flea-gauge
route was the WW&F's Albion & Wiscasset, 43.5 miles, operating the smallest-known (7x7 feet) R.P.O. apartment
anywhere. The one tiny mixed train left Albion daily at 5:30 A.M., its speed cut from 60 mph to 20, doubtless dreaming
of the four hundred mile slim-gauge network its promoters planned to extend to Quebec, Province of Quebec. Its last
new postmarker was celebrated by a cacheted collectors' cover March 8, 1933— a wreck the following June 8th "finished"
the railway for good.


Jeff S.

[Ed Lecuyer]

THAT EXPLAINS IT!!!

I picked up (and donated to the Archives) a "First Day of Cancellation" envelope for March 8, 1933 - but no one seemed to know what exactly it was or why it was issued.

Be sure to get this clipping to Linda to include with the artifact.

[Dave Buczkowski]

“Flea gauge”??? Oh the insult of it all!
Dave

[Ted Miles]

folks,
        Robert W. Richardson of the Colorado Railroad Museum was a big time stamp and cancellation collector. In his recollections he reported that he wrote to the Post Master to report that the RPO stamp on the WW&F was illegible and requested a replacement. The new stamp went to the RPO at about the time the service was abandoned. He regretted that he had given away all of his envelopes with the WW& Rwy RPO stamp on them.

I hope that someone gives one of them to the museum Archives. 

Ted Miles, Life Member

[Ed Lecuyer]

Yes Ted.
The one pictured was purchased for, and donated to the Museum Archives.

Fascinating to think that Bob Richardson had something to do with its issue.

[Allan Fisher]

You will recall that Bob Richardson left only three bequests to railroad museums in his will. The WW&F was one of them.  Bob visited in the last year of his life and rejoiced over the cab ride he was given at Sheepscot.