Mailing May

by Michael O. Tunnell and Ted Rand

In 1914 the train was the only way to travel the 75 mountainous miles between May's... read more

In 1914 the train was the only way to travel the 75 mountainous miles between May's home and Grandma Mary's in Idaho. May's parents couldn't afford a $1.55 train ticket for May. Ingenuity and lots of luck made it possible for May to be mailed from Grangeville to Lewiston as a package weighing less than 50 pounds. She was mailed to Grandma Mary's legally for 53 cents, like a parcel post shipment of baby chicks might be sent. Tunnell used postal history information and May's family sources to develop a story based on the real Charlotte May Pierstorff's trip in the mail car. Rand's watercolor paintings reflect the time, and the author's note provides facts about travel and communication at the time this happened. (Ages 5-9)

© Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 1997

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