THEN – In 1968, the Wayland Post Office was opened at 135 E. Superior.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Remarkable amateur historian Kathy Hamman Miller, a volunteer at the Then & Now Historical Library has scored again with a story about the U.S. postal service in Wayland.
by Kathy Hamman Miller
According to the book that’s for sale at Then-Now Genealogical-Library “The Post Offices of Allegan County Michigan,” the postal service was first initiated May 10, 1844, at the intersection of 135th Avenue and 10th Street. In 1854, the location was moved to what was called Chambers Corners, on the Kalamazoo & Grand Rapids Plank Road, operating out of the toll booth.
The village, officially being named Wayland in 1868, had a major growth spurt when the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad arrived in 1870. With the need of expansion and location convenience, the post offices were at one point located at the train stations. Rural Free Delivery (RFD) began on Sept. 15, 1903, with two routes.
The Highway Post Office Bus Services were started because of the declining railroad traffic in the early 1940s. These buses became popular with the rapidly expanding highways of the 1950s and 1960s.
The Wayland Post Office city delivery began on May 1, 1958. It became a first class office on July 1, 1966.
COVER PHOTO: The Post Office moved to its current location in June of 2001. This is a leased building of 6,475 square feet. There are three city and nine rural routes.
