PO (Postal Service) (White House Central Files: Subject Files)

This subject category contains all materials pertaining to postal affairs such as controlled circulation of publications; rates and fees; penalty, franked and official mail; and free mail for the blind.

Principal correspondents in these files include the President; his counselors, assistants and advisors in the White House, including, among others, Henry A. Kissinger, H.R. Haldeman, John D. Ehrlichman, Kenneth Cole, Peter Flanigan and Ronald Ziegler. Also included are successive Postmaster Generals, Winton M. Blount and E.T. Klassen; executives of other government agencies; Members of Congress and the public.

The terms Executive and General which are stamped above the subject file code indicate the source of the materials. Documents designated as Executive are communications between foreign, national and state and local government executives and prominent persons. Those documents designated General are communications among government officials and private citizens and organizations. The topics filed under each heading are generally similar.

The types of records found in the PO files include original incoming letters and staff memoranda; carbons and electrostatic copies of outgoing letters and staff memoranda; transmittal letters and memoranda for correspondence, reports and other items; telegrams, cables and teletype communications; printed materials such as reports, brochures, and magazine reprints; preservation copies of newspaper and magazine clippings; cross references to other file materials; and withdrawal forms for materials either transferred as audiovisual or museum items, or withdrawn for national security or privacy considerations.

Some materials relating to PO are in the following subject files:

FG 6-11-1/Cashen Cashen, Henry

FG 17 Department of Justice

FG 18 Post Office Department

FG 295 U.S. Postal Service

GI Gifts

LA Labor

LG

 

PO POST OFFICE

Topics include reform of the postal system; labor relations with postal employees and the issue of compulsive unionism; obscene mail; Congressional mail; collecting postal debts owed to the United States; complaints or praise for mail service; and mail service to the Armed Forces.

PO 1 COLLECTIONS-DELIVERIES

Materials concern the quality of mail service; restoration of city names to postmarks; obscene materials in the mail; suggestions for expediting or improving mail service; and mail service to Vietnam and other countries.

PO 2 COMMEMORATIVE STAMPS

Topics include proposals for special stamps honoring specific persons, organizations, things, ideas or events. Much of the public mail in this category concerns the controversy over removing "In the beginning, God" from the Apollo 8 stamp.

PO 3 RATES-FEES-SPECIAL SERVICES

Materials pertain to parcel post handling; ratification of parcel post agreements with other nations; postal rate increases; requests for special rates; postage rates to Vietnam; stamps; post office self-service centers; franking privileges; and obscene mail.