postrider

Horseback mail carrier

A postrider was a person who carried mail on horseback, especially in colonial and early America before the establishment of regular postal routes and stagecoach service.

The term is historical: The postrider arrived with news from Philadelphia.

Also spelled post-rider or post rider.

colonial

mailcoach

Horse-drawn postal vehicle

stagecoachHorse-drawn route vehicle
posthouseMail relay station
postboyMounted mail courier

turnpike · diligence · livery · tricorn · colonial · frontier · revolutionary · dispatch · courier · messenger

equipment

horseback

Atop a steed

mailbagSack for letters
saddlebagsBags draped over mounts
saddleMounted rider's seat

bridle · reins · spurs · girth · horn · stirrups · leather · oilskin · lantern · pistol

correspondence

mail

Postal system items

lettersAlphabetic characters or mail
correspondenceExchanged written communication
messagesSent pieces of communication

delivery · dispatch · news · bulletin · parcel · envelope · sealed · urgent · tidings · intelligence

journey

waystation

Intermediate stopping point

innLodging for wayfarers
tavernPublic drinking establishment
changeoverComplete shift between systems

milestone · route · relay · posthouse · dismount · rest · lodging · overnight · stopover · refreshment

riding

gallop

Swiftest quadruped gait

canterModerate equine gait
trotPace between walk, canter
swiftMoving with speed

speedy · haste · endurance · stamina · tireless · dusty · weathered · solitary · intrepid · hardy

Opposites

mode of mail transport

postridermail ship

Vessel for postal delivery

mail coach · stagecoach driver · mail carrier · mail plane · postman

solitary vs. collective transport

postriderstagecoach

Horse-drawn route vehicle

mail coach · stagecoach driver · mail train · diligence

Family

ride, poster, rider, posted, postcard, posting, postman, postal, post

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