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Pitney-Bowes Postage Meter Co : Original Philatelic Ephemera - Souvenir Postcard Commemorating the Mailomat, Compliments of Pitney-Bowes Postage Meter Co

Eagle Post Card View Co. Inc., New York

Original black-and-white printed postcard commemorating the Mailomat, a self-service variable-rate stamp vending machine. Postcard is unused. Printed by the Eagle Post Card View Co., Inc. of New York. No date, c. 1930s-1950s. 5 1/2" x 3 1/2." Postcard is virtually pristine and intact except for age toning and a minuscule spot of rubbing on back. A Fine copy. On the front of the postcard at center is descriptive printed information about the Mailomat and how to use it. This description is flanked on either side by two black-and-white photographic illustrations of a woman placing some mail into a Mailomat and a mailman collecting mail from a Mailomat. Printed text on back reads, "Souvenir for patrons of the U.S. Mails, compliments of Pitney-Boews Postage Meter Co. Can be coin-mailed in the 'Mailomat' ... for 1 [cent] to any U.S.A. address." The Mailomat was a self-service variable-rate stamp vending machine issued by Pitney Bowes with the approval of the United States Post Office Department (USPOD; the predecessor of the United States Postal Service (USPS)). As noted by the description on the front of postcard, the Mailomat was both a mailbox and postage meter intended for mail that did not have postage applied yet. To use the Mailomat, people would insert coins into the Mailomat vending machine, turn the dial to the correct postage rate, and then drop their mail into the machine where it would automatically be franked with the corresponding postage value. The Mailomat was first used on October 14, 1936. The Mailomat was a novel machine at the time and enjoyed a few decades of use. However, dwindling demand over the years led to Pitney Bowes removing most of its Mailomats beginning in the late 1960s. By 1970, all Mailomats had been decommissioned except for one in the lobby of Pitney Bowes headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut. With Pitney Bowes out of the market, its competitors released their own versions of self-service variable-rate stamp vending machines, but all failed due to the same reason of low demand.. Ephemera. Book Condition: Collectible-Fine. Binding: No Binding

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