Railway Mail Service Superintendent Owney tag

Owney was a scruffy mutt who became a regular fixture at the Albany, New York, post office in 1888. His owner was likely a postal clerk who let the dog walk him to work. Owney was attracted to the texture or scent of the mailbags and when his master moved away, Owney stayed with his new mail clerk friends. He soon began to follow mailbags, first onto mail wagons and then mail trains. Owney began to ride with the bags on Railway Mail Service (RMS) trains across the state . . . and then the country! The Railway Mail Service clerks adopted Owney as their unofficial mascot.

Postal workers and others began to mark Owney’s travels by placing tokens, tags, and medals on his collar. These items included baggage check and hotel room key tokens, dog licenses, and numerous items given to the dog by a variety of individuals and organizations.

Owney’s best friends among postal employees were the railway mail clerks who rode with him on trains. While in Boston, Massachusetts, Owney often spent time visiting not only the general city post office, but also the Railway Mail Service offices. At the time of this visit, the Division Superintendent of the RMS for Boston was Edward J. Ryan, who had started his career as a railway mail service clerk in 1868, riding the Boston and Albany Railway Post Office for $1,400 a year. The pride of the Railway Mail Service workers is evident in their boast of being “First in Everything” on this tag.

Markings:
literal: FIRST IN / EVERYTHING / OFFICE / SUPT. RAILWAY / MAIL SERVICE / BOSTON / MASS. / APRIL 27TH 1892

Museum ID: 0.052985.148