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Reference.org
United States Post Office Department
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<p>The United States Post Office Department (USPOD; also known as the Post Office or U.S. Mail) was the predecessor of the <a href="/facts/United_States_Postal_Service/1Je8qAHF">United States Postal Service</a>, established in 1792. From 1872 to 1971, it was officially in the form of a <a href="/facts/Cabinet_of_the_United_States/2ouVJrjQ">Cabinet</a> department. It was headed by the <a href="/facts/United_States_Postmaster_General/A3JK06Jt">postmaster general</a>. </p><p>The <a href="/facts/Postal_Service_Act/nw78ItEM">Postal Service Act</a>, signed by U.S. president <a href="/facts/Presidency_of_George_Washington/MUePXWkS">George Washington</a> on February 20, 1792, established the department. Postmaster General <a href="/facts/John_McLean/byMV48w5">John McLean</a>, in office from 1823 to 1829, was the first to call it the Post Office <i>Department</i> rather than just the "Post Office." The organization received a boost in prestige when President <a href="/facts/Andrew_Jackson/MjlxPRzk">Andrew Jackson</a> invited his postmaster general, <a href="/facts/William_T._Barry/QWXYCt9R">William T. Barry</a>, to sit as a member of the Cabinet in 1829. The <a href="/facts/Post_Office_Act_(1872)/orcHJj90">Post Office Act of 1872</a> (17 <a href="/facts/United_States_Statutes_at_Large/tT1dUjXo">Stat.</a> <a href="https://legislink.org/us/stat-17-283">283</a>) elevated the Post Office Department to Cabinet status. </p><p>During the American Civil War (1861–1865), postal services in the <a href="/facts/Confederate_States_of_America/jMSDM4q3">Confederate States of America</a> were provided by the <a href="/facts/Confederate_States_of_America_Post-office_Department/oMVRJ3H1">Confederate States of America Post-office Department</a>, headed by Postmaster General <a href="/facts/John_Henninger_Reagan/rSmPskHT">John Henninger Reagan</a>. It faced insurmountable obstacles, especially the requirement that it not run a deficit. </p><p>The <a href="/facts/Postal_Reorganization_Act/sfDnE0Hh">Postal Reorganization Act</a> was signed by <a href="/facts/President_of_the_United_States/oMsfmLb1">President</a> <a href="/facts/Richard_Nixon/HS8uXAoC">Richard Nixon</a> on August 12, 1970. It replaced the cabinet-level Post Office Department with the independent United States Postal Service on July 1, 1971. The regulatory role of the postal services was then transferred to the <a href="/facts/Postal_Regulatory_Commission/VybGUEV8">Postal Regulatory Commission</a>. </p>