The word post basically means a method of sending letters around the country, and it was first used in 1506. Its name comes from the early postal systems. They used riders which were posted at certain intervals along a route, transporting letters by using a relay system. Many ancient civilizations created their own postal services. The Egyptians used a courier service to send out all the Pharaohs decrees. The Persians used one where a rider would gallop to a station, there he would swap horse with a fresh one to maintain maximum speed. The Greek Herodotus described the process, that as many days as there were in the entire journey, so many were the men and horses who waited along the road, each man and horse at intervals of a day’s journey, and they were not stopped by snow or rain, heat nor darkness from getting their appointed task done with all speed. A version of this can be seen on the outside of the General Post Office based in New York.
Because postmen used to use cloth sacks to deliver letters, of which mice used to eat, cats were often brought in to ensure the numbers were kept low. Three cats were officially stationed at the Post Office in 1868, earning an allowance of a shilling per week. In May 7, 1869, it was said that the cats had performed their duty extremely well. The most famous post cat was known as Tibs, he was born in 1950, and resided in the Post Office headquarters for nearly 14 years, and had his obituary printed in the Post Office Magazine. The last cat was Blackie, who died in 1984.