1800 Black New York City Clamshell on Privately Carried Drop Letter

Folded letter datelined Stockbridge, Massachusetts, November 7, 1800, privately carried to New York City and dropped at the post office, where it received the New York “clamshell” handstamp and manuscript “1” rate for drop letter service. Addressed to Mr. Timothy Green, Fair Street, New York. The letter was mailed under the provisions of the Postal Act of February 20, 1792, which authorized a 1c fee for letters delivered within the same post office. The letter’s contents include period commentary: “Politicks run high here and Religion low.”
This is among the earliest documented drop letters recorded.