Pair of Rare Brass United States Mail Postal Chutes and Door Pulls, circa 1890

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Pair of Rare Brass United States Mail Postal Chutes and Door Pulls, circa 1890

About the Item

Pairs of antique American 19th century U.S. brass postal mail wall chutes with eagle designs and door pulls made by the Cutler Manufacturing Company. These came out of a bank from Williams Street in New York City's financial district. The door pulls are 9.63 wide 1.25 inches wide. The bigger box is 8.25" high x 6" wide x 2.25" deep, the smaller box is 8.25" high x 5.75 wide x 1.75" deep. A mail chute is a largely defunct letter collection device used in early multi-story office buildings, hotels, apartment buildings and other high rise structures. Letters were dropped from the upper stories and collected (usually at the ground level) at a central depository by the postal service. This innovation was before the time of the modern "mail room" normally associated nowadays with high rise buildings. It was for the convenience of the users of the building so they would not have to take their mail to an outside mail box or to the post office. James Goold Cutler received a patent on September 11, 1883 for the mail chute. The first one was installed in 1884 in the Elwood Building in Rochester, New York. Cutler ultimately received thirty patents for variations of his invention. The original approved patent No. 284,951 design stated that it must "be of metal, distinctly marked U.S. Letter Box," and that the "door must open on hinges on one side, with the bottom of the door not less than 2'6" above the floor." If the building was more than two stories then the collection box was to be outfitted with a cushion to prevent injury to the mail. The mail chutes had to be accessible along its entire length so lodged mail could be removed. The first experimental "Cutler mail chute" device was successful at the Elwood Building so later it was installed in two New York City office buildings. Additional ones were then installed in railroad stations and some public buildings as a test. Eventually Cutler Mail Box produced over 1,600 such devices in buildings over the next twenty years.Then the postal service allowed "Cutler mail chutes" to be placed in hotels taller than five stories. They were also installed in public apartment buildings of more than fifty apartments.

Dimensions:
Height: 8.25 in (20.96 cm)Width: 6 in (15.24 cm)Depth: 2.25 in (5.72 cm)
Materials and Techniques:
Brass,Metal
Place of Origin:
United States
Period:
Late 19th Century
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1880
Condition:
Seller Location:
Hamilton, CA
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU1355213263472