The first office established
in Brookhaven town was in Middle Island, in 1796,which was then
known as Middletown. A few years later the name was changed to
Brookhaven, and in 1821. It was changed to its present name, Middle Island. The first postmaster was Apollus Wetmore.
According
to post
office records in the National Archives in Washington, D.C. There were
10 post offices in Brookhaven town in 1830, and their name date
established, and first postmaster in each follows;
The second post
office opened was at Drown, Meadow (Port Jefferson) in 1801, with
Zechariah Hawkins as postmaster.
Moriches was opened in 1802 with
William Smith as postmaster,
Patchogue came next on January 1, 1803,
with Nathan Mulford as first postmaster.
Fireplace
(Brookhaven
village) was opened about in 1803, and in 1871 the name was changed
to Brookhaven. The first postmaster was Robert Ellison.
Setauket was
established in August 1821, with Samuel Thompson as postmaster.
Wading river was opened in February 1825,with Zophar M. Miller as
first postmaster.
Miller's place was established on April 2, 1825
with William H. Helme as postmaster.
Next was Stony
Brook, which was
opened in March 1807, with Nathaniel Hallock as postmaster.
The tenth
post office to be open in the town was Coram on May 30, 1826, with
Richard W. Smith as first postmaster.
In the early years, the mail
carried through the Island by post riders on horseback, and later by
stage coach until the railroad was opened on the main line to
Greenport in 1844. For years after that the mail was carried across the
Island from the main line railroad stations to the South side
villages by stage coach. According to Skinner's New York State
register for 1830, mail was dispatched for the north side of the
Island every Sunday and Tuesday. The villages included were Cold
Spring Harbor, Huntington, Stony Brook, Setauket, Drown Meadow (Port
Jefferson) Miller's Place, Wading River, Mattituck, Cutchogue,
Southold
and Oyster Ponds (Orient).
Mail for the
middle of the island was sent
out every Monday and Friday to North Hempstead, Jericho, West Hills,
Smithtown, Coram, Middle Island, and Suffolk Court House(Riverhead).
On
the South side, mail was dispatched every Tuesday and Thursday for
Hempstead, Huntington South, Islip, Patchogue, Fireplace (Brookhaven)
Moriches, Speonk, Quogue, Sag Harbor, Southampton, Bridgehampton and
East
Hampton.
Rates of postage in 1824 on single letters (one sheet of paper) were six cents up to 30 miles; from 30 to 80 miles,10
cents; from 80 to 150 miles, 12 1/2 cents; from 150 to 400 miles, 18
1/2, cents, and over 400 miles, 25 cents.
Double
letters, or those
composed of two sheets of paper were double those rates, and triple
letters of three sheets of paper, triple those rates. Newspaper were
carried to any place within the state for one cent, and magazines
were rated by the sheet at one cent per sheet up to 50 miles and two
cents for over 100 miles.
If a letter in writing was put any
newspaper a fine of five dollars was made and the package liable to
letter postage.
At first most of the letters were sent with the
postage to be collected on the delivery end, and an old record book
of the postmaster at Middle Island for 1805 shows letters sent
collect on delivery to Newyork; 31 cents, Brooklyn, 11cents,
Huntington, 9 cents, Setauket, 24 cents, Southold, 8 cents. This was
the total business for that day, March 5,1805.
The postmaster General
reported 195 post office in 1792; in 1812, 2610 offices and in
1828, 7651 offices.