Early History
Free mail delivery began in American cities in 1863 with a limited scope. Shortly afterwards, rural citizens began petitioning for equal consideration. Rural free deliver (RFD) of mail began in the United States in 1896 with five routes. Seven years later, it had expanded to 15,119 routes covering 322,618 miles. The NRLCA was formed in 1903 at a cost of fifty cents per year in dues to its members.
The NRLCA held its first annual national convention in Chicago, Illinois, September 11–12, 1903 (the only year since without an NRLCA national convention was 1918 due to World War I. During World War II, the convention was limited to a small conference in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1942, and Cincinnati, Ohio the following two years. In 1945, a National Board Session was held in lieu of a delegate gathering). In attendance were 52 delegates from 15 states. The host state was represented by the most delegates with 13, followed by Michigan with twelve. Indiana and Nebraska both had five, Missouri had four, Iowa had three, Minnesota, New York and Ohio each had two and Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts and Wisconsin all had one. While represented by the NRLCA, neither Kansas nor Oklahoma had a representative in attendance.
The first officers elected to serve the NRLCA on day two of the NRLCA's first national convention (September 12, 1903) were:
- President: Frank H. Cunningham (Omaha, Nebraska)
- Vice President: B. Pitts Woods (Cherokee, Iowa)
- Secretary: W. F. Tumber (Lockport, New York)
- Treasurer: W. L. Fetters (Bluffton, Indiana)
- Executive Committee: H. E. Niven (Berthoud, Colorado), F. A. Putnam (Dudley, Massachusetts) and E. Dwyer (Aurora, Illinois)
In 1906, rural carriers were granted six national holidays. Christmas was not one of them, and did not become a holiday for rural carriers until 1923. In 1908, women attended the NRLCA national convention for the first time. In 1924, a special association committee traveled to Washington, D.C. to lobby for an equipment maintenance allowance (EMA). The following year, it became law. In 1928, the NRLCA implemented term limits for its officers. However, term limits were repealed in 1932. In 1941, tire and gasoline rationing from World War II affected rural carriers. NRLCA President Wallker gained some exemptions from rationing for rural carriers. In 1946, the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) expressed interest in incorporating RFD into their union. In 1947, the NRLCA declined.
On January 17, 1962, President John F. Kennedy signed executive order 10988 establishing employee-management cooperation in the federal service. Rural carriers selected the NRLCA as their agent, and the union has held exclusive recognition to represent the rural carrier craft within the Post Office since.
Read more about this topic: National Rural Letter Carriers' Association
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