'Tis the season when brides anxiously begin to prepare for the big day and soon our mailboxes and Facebook pages will be filled with shower and wedding invites. In our bustling world of convenience everything, I caught a heartwarming glimpse of days gone by in a tiny town called Bridal Veil with a terrific claim to fame.
The Bridal Veil Post Office (BVPO) is an 11' x 12' clapboard cabin built in the 1930s that has just enough room for a closet-sized lobby, 60 mail boxes and newspaper shelves. It's the second smallest in the USA* and is run by Postmaster Geri Canzler, who is also the President of Bridal Veil's Historical Preservation Society. Owing to the town's name, she hand cancels over 200,000 invitations a year. Yes, you read that right, HAND cancels. All stamps, once affixed, have to be canceled and today, they're run through machines so if you have adornments like bows on your invitations, they'll get crushed. You can request the service at some post offices but many a bride has lamented over their invites being ruined by accidental machine cancellation.
Some consider Bridal Veil a modern ghost town but it does have a population of 88 and besides the post office, there's a Community Church and cemetery. Located in Multnomah County, Oregon, it was established in 1886 and was centered around the Bridal Veil Falls Lumbering Company. The timber was harvested on Larch Mountain and production was shared with the nearby logging town of Palmer. It ended in 1936 when the Palmer mill closed and a fire destroyed the mill in Bridal Veil. In 1937, the entire town was bought by a company that became the Bridal Veil Lumber and Box Company which made wooden cheese boxes for Kraft Food Co. until 1960. When the mill finally closed in 1989, the BVPO was moved into the cabin that was formerly the mill's tool shed and first aid station.
Canzler and the citizens are fighting to save the town. In 1991, the Trust for Public Lands, a San Francisco based organization that buys private land for wildlife and scenic protection, bought 46 acres of Bridal Veil for approx. $400,000. Despite a 10 year battle by the Crown Point Country Historical Society to save the mill's buildings and housing, the trust demolished 16 buildings in 2001. In 2008, the Trust sold 18 more acres to the U.S. Forest Service again raising concerns over the post office and church. Now here's the best part; the Trust says it doesn't own the post office land and even the U.S. Postal Service can't figure out who does!
The Historical Society hosts many fundraisers to raise money to buy the land next to the town cemetery and move the Bridal Veil Post Office (BVPO) and church there. In 2006, the Society got the deed to the cemetery which is maintained by volunteers. Their hope is to also obtain the deeds to the post office and church lands. Aside from brides, some companies are helping by ordering postage stamps by mail.
The Historical Society hosts many fundraisers to raise money to buy the land next to the town cemetery and move the Bridal Veil Post Office (BVPO) and church there. In 2006, the Society got the deed to the cemetery which is maintained by volunteers. Their hope is to also obtain the deeds to the post office and church lands. Aside from brides, some companies are helping by ordering postage stamps by mail.
Canzler notes, "We receive thousands of invitations in the mail during the wedding season starting in February and running through September. Most importantly, many couples buy their Love stamps here and apply them on the spot, or they send a check in advance and I mail the stamps back to them. Those stamp purchases are what keeps our tiny little PO going year after year. We are also on the National list of special places to hand cancel Valentines on February 14th."
The BVPO will be 125 years old in 2012 surviving only because of their namesake postmark. It has been featured in numerous publications including Martha Stewart Weddings. Brides have often remarked that their guests complimented the invitations so they do make and leave a great impression. Not only are the postmark images charming, you'll be contributing to the preservation of Bridal Veil.
Getting married soon? Here's a few tips. Remember, don't send your invites already stamped. Weigh your filled envelopes and calculate the postage you'll need. Choose your stamps on usps.com and then mail your selection with an enclosed note and personal check to the BVPO (no credit/debit cards accepted). When your stamps arrive, decide where you want to place them on the envelope making sure to leave enough room for the lovely images, then securely box and mail them to the BVPO. Be sure to include personal info, the date you would like them canceled and sent, which image you want and a check for extra postage. There is no fee for hand cancellation on the first 50 invitations and each thereafter is just a nickel (as of 2010). There are two images to choose from, double hearts (shown) or doves. Lastly, don't forget to address one to yourself as a precious keepsake!
*In case you're wondering, the smallest post office (8x8) is located in Ochopee, Florida.
Bridal Veil Post Office
Geri Canzler - Postmaster
1 West Mill Rd.
Bridal Veil, OR 97010
503-695-2380
Geri Canzler - Postmaster
1 West Mill Rd.
Bridal Veil, OR 97010
503-695-2380
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