Carrier's stamp is a type of

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...

used by private mail carriers to deliver mail directly to an addressee from the

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

History

When the

postal service The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal syst ...

was first organized and the delivery of mail was only from one post office to another post office and not directly to the addressee. This created the need for private mail carriers. In the United States, this specialized category of stamps existed mainly from 1842 to 1860.

References

External links

A Baltimore Carriers' Stamp

Philatelic terminology {{philately-stub