Adam J. Rice, Early Sandusky Mail Carrier

Adam J. Rice was born in 1856 in Sandusky, Ohio, to Mr. and Mrs. Peter Rice. On December 1, 1882, Adam Rice was appointed as one of the earliest mail carriers in Sandusky.  During his almost thirty year career with the postal service, Mr. Rice served under seven different postmasters, retiring in October 1915. On his last day of work, Mr. Rice was called to the Post Office Annex where he was presented with a mahogany chair upholstered in leather. The chair was a gift from the Postmaster Charles Schippel, along with the mail carriers and postal clerks from Sandusky’s Post Office, which was then still in downtown Sandusky at the corner of Columbus Avenue and Market Street.

In an article which appeared in the January 24, 1923 issue of the Sandusky Register, Adam Rice told of a time when a change of party in the Presidency sometimes meant that employees at the Post Office could lose their job, due to the spoils system. He said after the United States Civil Service was established, postal workers could only lose their job if there were a valid reason.

An obituary for Adam J. Rice is found on page 223 of the 1946 Obituary Notebook at the Sandusky Library. Mr. Rice  died on November 21, 1946. He was survived by his sister,Mrs. August Weier, a nephew, J.Leroy Weier, and a niece, Mrs. Fred Bloker. Funeral services were held at the Charles J. Andres Sons’ Funeral Home, and burial was at Sandusky Library.