Living in the age of instant communication, we take for granted the speed at which information can be sent and received. A hundred years ago, the fastest—and most novel—way to send letters quickly was by plane. But for most Americans, airmail was neither accessible nor cheap.
In 1928, airmail was a premium service, costing ten times as much per ounce as regular first-class mail. It was also a service not available in all communities. It was only in 1926 that airlines began to fly mail on a contract basis for the US Post Office Department. In Wisconsin, the first contract airmail route opened between Milwaukee and La Crosse on June 7, 1926, with Madison added as a stop the following November. Milwaukee, Fond du Lac, Oshkosh, Appleton, and Green Bay…
