The United States Postal Service sponsors two biennial prizes for scholarship on the history of the American postal system, the Rita Lloyd Moroney Awards. Scholarship by junior scholars (undergraduates and graduate students) is eligible for a $1,000 award; scholarship by senior scholars (faculty members, independent scholars, and public historians) is eligible for a $2,000 award.
The American postal system coordinated the first nationwide communications network in the United States. Throughout much of American history, it was also the largest federal government agency. Founded in 1775, the postal system expanded rapidly following the enactment of the Post Office Act of 1792; by 1828, it maintained offices throughout the length and breadth of the United States. In the early republic, the postal system facilitated the regular and reliable conveyance over long distances and at high speed of information on public affairs, market trends, and personal matters. Since the 1870s, it has also become a major medium for the conveyance of goods. Given the enormous geographical scale on which the postal system has operated and its importance as a federal government agency, it played a major role in American business, politics, journalism, labor, popular culture, and social reform. The influence of the postal system in each of these realms—as well as in many others—deserves the attention of historians.
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