Mail pouch
Object Details
- Description
- This US mail pouch, attributed to 1943, was used by a military postal service. Stenciled with the words "U.S. Mail Bag," the body of the bag is olive green cotton with a stitched leather closure and base. One handle is attached to the back of the mailbag, while the front leather band has five grommet holes through which rings from the interior protrude. A leather strap hangs down from the left side, which slides through each ring and is then locked to secure the mail. There is also one grommeted metal ring on the top of the back of the bag.
- Pouches, as opposed to sacks, are generally made of a heavy canvas, locked with special postal locks, and closed using a leather strap and ring configuration. Pouches are used to carry first class, domestic, or military mail. The leather strap cinches the top of the pouch through the grommeted rings. The strap is then locked using special postal locks. Through-registered pouches, however, carry locked inner-registered sacks of registered mail. The straps on those pouches are buckled and then locked.
- Data Source
- National Postal Museum
- Date
- c. 1943
- Object number
- 1991.0316.1
- Type
- Mail Processing Equipment
- Medium
- cotton; leather; metal
- Dimensions
- Overall: 4 1/4 x 16 1/2 x 27in. (10.8 x 41.9 x 68.6cm)
- See more items in
- National Postal Museum Collection
- Topic
- World War II (1939-1945)
- Mail Processing
- Record ID
- npm_1991.0316.1
- Usage
- CC0
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