Advanced Postal History Quiz

Good luck!

1.

For how much was the Hope Diamond insured when it was mailed to the Smithsonian Institution in 1958?
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a) About $500,000

 

b) About $1,000,000

 

c) About $5,000,000

2.

In September 1918, the U.S. Post Office sent two pilots on a path finding flight between which two U.S. cities in an effort to expand the country's airmail service?
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a) New York and Chicago

 

b) New York and St. Louis

 

c) New York and Detroit

3.

A popular style of stagecoach was used in the late 1800s throughout the American west to carry passengers and mail between towns. From which New England town did these stagecoaches take their name?
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a) Burlington, Vermont

 

b) Boston, Massachusetts

 

c) Concord, New Hampshire

4.

This actor portrayed the character "Cliff Clavin," the know-it-all mailman for 11 years on the television series "Cheers."
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a) John Ratzenberger

 

b) George Wendt

 

c) Ted Danson

5.

The tunnel-shaped mailbox is a common sight on America's rural roads. What year was it designed?
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a) 1905

 

b) 1915

 

c) 1925

6.

As train traffic began to slow, Highway Post Office Service was inaugurated in 1941 to replace portions of the Railway Mail Service. When did Highway Post Office Service end?
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a) 1974

 

b) 1968

 

c) 1980

7.

Dog sleds were used to carry mail in Alaska throughout the 19th century and into the 20th. What mode of transportation eventually replaced most of the sleds?
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a) Automobiles

 

b) Trains

 

c) Airplanes

8.

Rural Free Delivery Service began as an experimental service in West Virginia. The service became very popular, and was soon in great demand. By 1906, how many miles of American roads were covered by Rural Free Delivery Service?
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a) 700,000

 

b) 600,000

 

c) 500,000

9.

V-mail was the name given to a process of reproducing miniaturized messages by microphotography from 16mm film during World War II. The system of microfilming letters was based on the use of special V-mail letter-sheets, which were a combination of letter and envelope. The letter-sheets were constructed and gummed so as to fold into a uniform and distinctively marked envelope. Why were they used during the war?
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a) To prevent spies from reading the letters.

 

b) To save badly needed cargo space.

 

c) To test the eyesight of military personnel.

10.

In the 20th century, postal vehicles were first painted olive drab, then in the 1950s, red, white and blue. In what decade did they begin to be painted almost all white?

 

a) 1960s

 

b) 1970s

 

c) 1980s

 

Reveal answers )