(No, the trip is not just about post offices. It's about experiencing America -- ballparks, cities, national parks, farmlands, and good local food. That said, since the rate of post office suspensions will only continue to accelerate courtesy POSt"Plan", post offices still need to be documented and Postmaster stories collected.)
Where to begin? Well, the first office on the trip was the... err... illustrious Dover, NJ Carrier Annex off I-80:
When I was in middle school my family took a trip to Chicago, and one of our first stops was the post office in Buttzville, NJ and a great place called Hot Dog Johnny's. The post office was located in a former gas station, and has since been suspended. I recognized the site this time around:
Former site: Buttzville, NJ post office:
Check out Hot Dog Johnny's. Fresh fries, great shakes. It was completely packed.
Beautiful post office of Sunday: Phillipsburg, NJ, built 1933. Amazing brickwork. Check it out:
In Allentown/Bethlehem, PA, I found both the current and former site of the Lehigh Valley post office and P&DC:
The former site is now known as the Airport Branch or Airport Annex of Bethlehem:
After that, a torrential downpour took out most of the potential postal photography time, as these clouds foreshadow:
And that's just day 1! There's plenty more for the next installment of GP 2012.
I hope there is more to your trip than taking long lens pictures of various Post Office buildings. Otherwise a vacation can't help you.
ReplyDeleteOf course there's more to it. Just amended the post to note that I'm hitting up ballparks, national parks, music festivals, and good local eateries!
ReplyDeleteI used to live near Hot Dog Johnny's. Our family has very fond memories. Thanks for bringing them up again!
ReplyDeleteYou definitely missed one of a kind. Aladdin, WY 82710. Still housed in the 1800s general store and absolute must see.
ReplyDeleteYou really should check out Luckenbach, Texas.
ReplyDeletePopulation, 7 when I was there. Front of the building was a dusty old souvenir store and the rear was a post office with a potbellied stove and you could sit around it warming your hands while having a nice cold beer. I did just that with a couple locals. 01/20/1995 Cold beer and hot coffee...As for the song, the lady said Willie had been there lots of times but Waylon had never been there.