My Postal Family
Postal Families
While searching my family tree - I found out that my great great father Charles Phelps Briggs was the first Postmaster in Napa, Calif in the late 1840’s.
My grandfather W.A, Wiedenbeck was a mail clerk (US Army) during WW1 at Ft Lewis, Washington and before that he worked at Campo, California as a mail clerk. He worked as assistant Postmaster of Tecate, California in 1914. Our family lawyer sent me an article on depositions about grandfather giving one about a robbery at Campo, California. March 1914 the post office located in a general store was robbed by 3 Mexican bandits who beat up my grandfather and left him for dead and then murdered the Postmaster, set fire to the building and fled back into Mexico. My grandfather managed to get out of the building and survived til his death in 1962.
My great uncle J.A. Downey was a clerk sometime between the Spanish American war and WW1 in Missouri, but the records are lost. He was in the Army-Air Force for like 32 years.
I joined the post office as a Christmas causal Dec 1963 and 1964 and became a 'sub' Nov 7, 1965. Became a regular in 1966. Worked at ATO/AMF from 1979-til present. Have done all sorts of jobs - did special deliveries, collection routes, states clerk, express clerk, foreign clerk and finally ATO/AMF as a transfer clerk/ramp clerk relief.
I remember when a letter cost 4 cents to mail and the downtown post office customer window was open 24 hrs in early 1960's.
I have been lucky to be able to do my entire career here in San Diego, California.
AUTHOR NAME: Ruthann Storr
AUTHOR CITY, STATE: San Diego, California
