Delivery heroes: How Russian postmen glued the country together

Oct 10 2016

Alexey Mosko

1972. Post employees Flera Mansurova, Lyudmila Kuznetsova and Valentina Ozherelyeva at work in Naberezhnye Chelny (1064km east of Moscow).

1972. Post employees Flera Mansurova, Lyudmila Kuznetsova and Valentina Ozherelyeva at work in Naberezhnye Chelny (1064km east of Moscow).

Boris Myasnikov/TASS

Postal workers have always been of great importance for such a vast country like Russia. For people in far-flung corners, they are the only lifeline tying them to the mainland. Here are 13 historical snapshots of the postal service and its unsung heroes.

1900s. Postmen pose for a picture in front of a post office.

1900s. Postmen pose for a picture in front of a post office.

Multimedia Art Museum Moscow / Moscow House of Photography

1913. A postman.

1913. A postman.

RIA Novosti

1938. A post office worker in Ivanovo (345 km northeast of Moscow).

1938. A post office worker in Ivanovo (345 km northeast of Moscow).

Multimedia Art Museum Moscow / Moscow House of Photography

1943. A Red Army tanker asks a postman if there is mail for him.

1943. A Red Army tanker asks a postman if there is mail for him.

RIA Novosti

1963. Post employees sort out the mail.

1963. Post employees sort out the mail.

TASS

1969. A postman delivers mail to a Soviet military ship.

1969. A postman delivers mail to a Soviet military ship.

V. Kunyaev/TASS

1982. A view of the customer floor at the central post office in Moscow.

1982. A view of the customer floor at the central post office in Moscow.

Albert Pushkarev/TASS

1977. A post office information desk in the entrance hall of an apartment building in Moscow.

1977. A post office information desk in the entrance hall of an apartment building in Moscow.

Viktor Koshevoy/TASS

1987. A post office employee instructs an intern.

1987. A post office employee instructs an intern.

Igor Zotin/TASS

1987. Postwoman Irina Volkova delivers mail to reindeer breeder Yury Filippov in Lovozero, Murmansk Region (1846km north of Moscow).

1987. Postwoman Irina Volkova delivers mail to reindeer breeder Yury Filippov in Lovozero, Murmansk Region (1846km north of Moscow).

Semyon Maisterman/TASS

1987. Vshchizh, Bryansk Region (448km southwest of Moscow). Postal delivery worker Ivan Frolenkov on duty during the muddy season.

1987. Vshchizh, Bryansk Region (448km southwest of Moscow). Postal delivery worker Ivan Frolenkov on duty during the muddy season.

Leonid Sverdlov/TASS

ussr people_multimedia history_multimedia Multimedia In pictures Nature People Culture History Viral in Russia Russian handicrafts

Read more