US : The Bayonne Blizzard Mail.

Bayonne Blizzard Mail

On March 12th, 1888, New York City and vicinity were effectually tied up by a severe blizzard. Traffic, not only in
the city, but in the suburbs also, was more or less at a standstill— for nearly a week. During the four days from
March 12th to 16th, Mr. Munn, the postmaster at Bayonne, N.J., across the river from New York, sent forward very
little or no mail.

In this emergency, Mr. A. W. Seward, a drug clerk, and Dr. W. H. Mitchell, both of Bayonne, determined that
important mail should go through to New York. On the four days mentioned, they sent each morning a special
messenger on the steamer "Chancellor," of the Central Railroad of New Jersey, from Bergen Point, Bayonne, to
New York City with mail. During the four days some five hundred letters were so carried; many of these letters
contained manuscript, compiled by newspaper reporters at Bayonne, for their respective papers in New York.

The two men mentioned caused a special stamp to be made, and of it approximately 500 were used. This stamp was
put on the cover along with the usual two-cent Government stamp, and indicated prepayment over the special route
established for the emergency. Delivery of the letters was made, not only to the New York Post Office, but to the
newspaper offices in the vicinity of Park Row.

Mention of this post and its delivery of mail is found in the "New York World" of March 14th, 1888.

The stamp was printed on a cream-white qua-drilled paper; in the centre are the arms of New Jersey, with "Blizzard
Mail to" above, and "N.Y.P.O." below them. The stamps were printed one at a time, type-set, and several errors
exist.
By Henry C. Needham.

Thanks for that super-cool article. They had snow drifts (snow dunes, basically for the snow illiterate here) from that snowfall at topped 50 feet! Amazing how they came up with such a cool stamp in short order.

Incomprehensible Smauggie,
the only snow we get here, is with a bad tv reception,
or a light dust on the freezer door. :)