I was wondering on this snowy day, waiting for the mailman, who is running late, about the creed we all know so well. So here for your reading pleasure is the history of the creed (which is not actualy their creed. Figures.)
United States Postal Service creed
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Inscription on James Farley Post Office (click to see detail)
The United States Postal Service has no official creed or motto.
Often falsely cited as such, "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds" is an inscription on the James Farley Post Office in New York City,[1] derived from a quote from Herodotus' Histories (8.98), referring to the courier service of the ancient Persian Empire:
It is said that as many days as there are in the whole journey, so many are the men and horses that stand along the road, each horse and man at the interval of a days journey; and these are stayed neither by snow nor rain nor heat nor darkness from accomplishing their appointed course with all speed. (trans. A.D. Godley 1924) In 2001, the USPS created a television commercial edited to Carly Simon's song "Let the River Run".[2][3] The commercial, which ran after the September 11, 2001, attacks and the anthrax mailings, featured no voice over, only the following text interspersed on title cards. A portion of this variation also appeared without citation in the USPS 2001 Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations (1.A-1):[4]
We are mothers and fathers. And sons and daughters. Who every day go about our lives with duty, honor and pride. And neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, nor the winds of change, nor a nation challenged, will stay us from the swift completion of our appointed rounds. Ever. The "creed" is also quoted in the lyrics of the 1981 Laurie Anderson single, "O Superman,"[5] and in the 1997 movie The Postman, starring Kevin Costner.[6]
In Adventures in Odyssey, the character Wooton Bassett said the mailman motto is:
"Rain or shine, snow or sleet, we deliver your mail! (But sunny days are optional...)"
In the Terry Pratchett Discworld novel Going Postal, the motto for the Ankh-Morpork Post Office is very similar, reading Neither rain nor snow nor gloom of night can stay these messengers about their duty. [7]
United States Postal Service creed
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search

Inscription on James Farley Post Office (click to see detail)
The United States Postal Service has no official creed or motto.
Often falsely cited as such, "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds" is an inscription on the James Farley Post Office in New York City,[1] derived from a quote from Herodotus' Histories (8.98), referring to the courier service of the ancient Persian Empire:
It is said that as many days as there are in the whole journey, so many are the men and horses that stand along the road, each horse and man at the interval of a days journey; and these are stayed neither by snow nor rain nor heat nor darkness from accomplishing their appointed course with all speed. (trans. A.D. Godley 1924) In 2001, the USPS created a television commercial edited to Carly Simon's song "Let the River Run".[2][3] The commercial, which ran after the September 11, 2001, attacks and the anthrax mailings, featured no voice over, only the following text interspersed on title cards. A portion of this variation also appeared without citation in the USPS 2001 Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations (1.A-1):[4]
We are mothers and fathers. And sons and daughters. Who every day go about our lives with duty, honor and pride. And neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, nor the winds of change, nor a nation challenged, will stay us from the swift completion of our appointed rounds. Ever. The "creed" is also quoted in the lyrics of the 1981 Laurie Anderson single, "O Superman,"[5] and in the 1997 movie The Postman, starring Kevin Costner.[6]
In Adventures in Odyssey, the character Wooton Bassett said the mailman motto is:
"Rain or shine, snow or sleet, we deliver your mail! (But sunny days are optional...)"
In the Terry Pratchett Discworld novel Going Postal, the motto for the Ankh-Morpork Post Office is very similar, reading Neither rain nor snow nor gloom of night can stay these messengers about their duty. [7]