US Mail Service Owney tag

1888-1897

There is no available information to indicate when this tag was presented to Owney. The identity of the donor and the location are also unknown. The tag is labeled U.S. Mail Service, with those words surrounding the number "5." The shape of the tag is similar to the identification badges used by Rural Free Delivery (RFD) carriers. The RFD badges were not issued by the Post Office Department but could be purchased by manufacturers who sold directly to rural carriers.