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Lost letter at the post office

personsv57
personsv57 ✭
May 20, 2022 edited July 30, 2024 in Search

I have a relative that died shortly after arriving in America from Sweden. His wife died on the trip over so 3 boys were left orphan. In the Moline Illinois paper,

clip_102205513.jpg

it lists a lost letter that was never picked up. By chance do they have those letters somewhere to access? Jonas ollson is the name. I have seen others in my pioneer lds line also. Just curious. Thank you

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Best Answers

  • Harvest8
    Harvest8 ✭✭✭
    May 20, 2022 Answer ✓

    1855 is the date of the public notice. not likely, but never say never. smile

    . Have you tried the Moline US Post office? maybe they can provide guidance.

    google search: Phone: (800) 275-8777

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  • JSmith528
    JSmith528 ✭
    May 20, 2022 edited May 20, 2022 Answer ✓

    This is an interesting question! Unfortunately, I don't think there is much likelihood of your being able to find your relative's letter after 160+ years. You could try writing to the Postmaster in Moline, though ....

    (It was pretty common even into the 20th century for people to send letters c/o a local post office when they weren't sure where the recipient would be at a given time. If you were traveling and expected (or hoped for) a letter, you would have to go to the various post offices along your route, to ask if there were any letters for you. (You can still do this, in fact -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poste_restante#United_States)

    The USPS still has a "Mail Recovery Center" (what used to be called the "Dead Letter Office") but although there is a great deal of information on this page,

    https://about.usps.com/postal-bulletin/2012/pb22351/html/info_005.htm

    they do not actually say how long they will keep an undeliverable letter.

    Apparently, undeliverable letters "below $25 in value" are now destroyed after that unstated time period --

    https://blog.stamps.com/2012/05/29/how-to-find-a-lost-usps-letter-or-package/


    1

Answers

  • personsv57
    personsv57 ✭
    May 20, 2022

    Thank you. It was a long shot but they did things different in those days. Even to know who it was from would be information. Thank you for taking time to answer.

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  • personsv57
    personsv57 ✭
    May 21, 2022

    Thank you both for your help. I will check with the post office.

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