Robinson Post Office

by: Anniah and Aurora

                          Robinson Post office 

William B. Baker built the post office in Robinson Illinois on Walnut St. in 1845 so people could get mail. He built the post office so people wouldn't have to travel far to deliver mail. Mail was received by horseback once or twice a week from Palestine. The mail was not heavy. About a dozen papers were taken to the community and few letters were coming. The charge was not based entirely on weight . Since B. Baker was an accommodating person, he kept the letters in his hat and gave them out to the persons to whom they were addressed whenever he met them. They had to have the money to pay the postage. If  the acting postmaster was a businessman, his place of business was used as the post office before the post office was built. 

In 1857,  Dr. William Watts maintained his medical office of the County Treasure. In the spring of 1858, a little shack was built on the grounds of Crawford County State Bank. The ground was later sold, the post office put rollers and moved the location where the old library stood. Since it took several days to get it to its new location, it became known as “Post office on wheels”. The first place, especially arranged  as the post office, was constructed in 1889 when the building, now occupied by the Brown Jewelry Store, was erected and the front prepared for the office. The location continued until 1907 when the post office accepted the proposition of Brubaker and Son to furnish a building for the office. The site accepted was just off the Square on West Walnut Street. They called for all fixtures, heating and lighting for a period of 10 years for an annual rental of $600.

Robinson received free city mail delivery service. There was no pavement at that time, so the carriers had to wear rubber boots in the rainy weather. At the time carriers were paid $12.50 a week. They commenced serving their routes by carrying all the mail their pouches would hold. Robbers forced the  back door of the post office and cracked the safe, getting away with $624.45 in cash and stamps and 13 registered packages. On June 22, 1910, telegrams were received here stating that an appropriation of $70,000 had been secured for the purchase of a site and erection of a suitable building.