The first Highway Post Office bus was inaugurated on February 10, 1941, on a route running from Washington, D.C. to Harrisonburg, Virginia. The second route was not established until 1946 due to the outbreak of World War II but the services lasted until 1974. Every time a new route was established, there would be a special first day cover. The first highway post office bus was designed and built by the Whites and an example has been preserved as part of the collection at the National Postal Museum. This example however awaits restoration at the Virginia Museum of Transportation. The HPOs were intended to replace the Railway Mail Service with the sorting facilities built on board almost identical to those on railcars.
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