Railway Mail Service Library Foundation8 mi
The Railway Mail Service Library Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to preserving America's Railway Post Office (RPO) and Highway Post Office (HPO) heritage, housed in the beautifully restored 1913 Boyce Railway Depot at 117 E Main St, Boyce, VA 22620. The foundation was incorporated in Virginia in March 2017, though the archival collection itself dates back to the 1950s. This postal history research center offers a real window into the golden age of mail-by-rail operations spanning 1862 to 1977. The historic depot was originally built for Norfolk & Western Railway at a then-extravagant cost of $25k, featuring elegant white stucco construction with clerestory windows across 3,450 square feet and 11 rooms. Annual membership costs just $10 (or $250 for lifetime), granting access to one of the nation's most thorough collections of primary source documents, mail-route schedules, distribution schemes, photographs, bound periodicals, and oral history recordings from former Railway Mail Service clerks. The collection includes artifacts like a 1931 Ford Model A mail truck and a 1967 Highway Post Office vehicle that's currently under restoration. Open by appointment only, with most research inquiries handled by mail. You can reach the foundation at rmslf@railwaymailservicelibrary.org to arrange research visits or ask about upcoming events like their Morse Day telegraph demonstrations. Now, this isn't a scenic train ride operator... but for train watching? Active Norfolk Southern freight trains roll by daily along the Hagerstown-to-Roanoke route, and there's something weirdly peaceful about hearing that horn echo off the old depot walls. Perfect for Virginia railroad enthusiasts, postal history researchers, philatelists, and heritage railway fans seeking an authentic connection to America's railroad postal heritage.